Title
Receive report from Omar Garcia, Water Resources Manager, regarding Edwards Aquifer 2021 Critical Period Management, permitted groundwater authorization and reported use.
Body
STAFF RECOMMENDED MOTION:
None. This item is for discussion purposes only.
SUMMARY:
The purpose of this agenda item is for the board to receive a report from Omar Garcia, Water Resources Manager, regarding 2021 groundwater withdrawal permits, reported usage by permit holders, and a review of 2021 critical period management (CPM), where groundwater withdrawal interruptions were made to applicable permit holders in the San Antonio pool of the Edwards Aquifer.
EAA rules require all non-exempt withdrawals to be metered and authorized for use within a calendar year. At the end of each year, permit holders are required to file annual use reports with the EAA, which must include as a minimum a beginning-year and an ending-year meter reading. From these readings, “annual use” is calculated. EAA staff reviews these reports, verifies the annual use calculation, and compares validated annual use to each permit holder’s annual authorized withdrawal amount. Authorized withdrawal amounts were affected by CPM reductions in 2021 in the San Antonio Pool of the Edwards Aquifer.
2021 Critical Period Management:
In 2021, declining water levels as measured at the Bexar County Index Well (J-17) and springflow measurements at Comal springs combined to trigger EAA’s CPM program for a total of 99 days in the San Antonio pool of the Edwards Aquifer. CPM conditions entered Stage 1 during four periods, from February 21 to March 3 (11 days); from March 24 to April 18 (26 days); April 30 to May 6 (7 days); and September 1 to October 14 (44 days); and entered Stage 2 during one period, from April 19 - to April 29 (11 days) resulting in an overall reduction of 5.71% to applicable permit holders (Municipal and Industrial permit holders, and Irrigation permits holders who did not file Notices of...
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