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Presented at the NABS Annual meeting, Anchorage, Alaska, 2006
in Watershed Science in Surface Drinking Water Supplies 1
Integrating multidisciplinary watershed science and external review in policy and management decisions of a large-scale interbasin water transfer: Providing water for people, agriculture and environmental flows of a river and estuary in Texas
T.L. Arsuffi1, A.S Sansom2, and L. Manning3.1Field Station, Texas Tech University. Junction, TX 76849, 2River Systems Institute, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666, 3Lower Colorado River Authority, 3700 Lake Austin Blvd. Austin, Texas 78703
San Antonio is the largest city in the world with a sole source aquifer for water supply and Texas has a population that could double by 2030. To diversify supply and provide for growth, one source of water is an interbasin transfer from the Colorado River. Legislation allowing the transfer between the Lower Colorado River Authority and the San Antonio Water System occurs if 7 criteria are met, including agricultural and municipal water conservation, river water availability, instream flow requirements, off channel storage facility siting and design, Matagorda Bay health and social, economic and environmental benefits and costs. The agreement has a 7 year feasibility and environmental studies period and provides for a broad public and scientific review process designed to ensure that all information is considered in establishing beneficial inflow and instream flow provisions. The Science Review Panel is comprised of academic and government experts who review project proposals and studies (10 study teams and over 30 documents to date) to help ensure technical integrity, scientific validity of study approaches and results, recommend actions to enhance technical quality and credibility of analyses and provide input to project teams to help balance cost and benefit of proposed actions.
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