[00:00:05]
WE WILL HAVE A QUORUM OR THERE YOU'RE.
WHEN PEOPLE TURN THEIR CAMERAS ON EVERYONE SWITCHES, UH, PLACES HANEY.
I DON'T THINK WE CAN'T HEAR YOU.
I HAD DIFFICULTY JOINING, BUT JENELLE SENT ME ANOTHER LINK, SO IT WORKS GREAT.
UM, GOOD JOB GETTING THROUGH THE IT GAUNTLET.
I HAVE DEFINITELY BEEN THERE FOR THESE.
UM, BUT YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY, YOU CAN ALWAYS JUST COME TO CITY HALL.
IT'S JUST ME AND SARAH AND JAY KNOLL UP HERE AND THE WONDERFUL IT PERSON, UM, FOR THE NEXT MEETING, IF YOU WANT.
[CALL TO ORDER]
LET'S GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED AND THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR BEING HERE AND THANK YOU FOR WAITING AND BEING PATIENT.THE FOLKS THAT HAVE BEEN HERE.
UM, THE, LET ME, LET ME FIND MY ACTUAL AGENDA.
UM, DO WE HAVE ANY CITIZENS COMMUNICATIONS? NOPE.
WE DO HAVE ONE GUEST HERE OBSERVING TODAY, WHICH IS AWESOME.
[1. APPROVAL OF MINUTES]
OKAY.OUR NEXT ITEM IS THE APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES.
THERE'S A, CAN WE APPROVE THEM? DO WE NEED TO TAKE THEM ONE BY ONE? OKAY.
SO THE FIRST ONE IS THE SEPTEMBER 7TH TASKFORCE, UM, MEETING, UH, MINUTES.
DO WE HAVE A SECOND HAITI? WAS THAT YOU? OKAY.
ANY OPPOSED? ANY ABSTAINING? ALL RIGHT.
THE NEXT ITEM IS THE NOVEMBER 3RD MEETING MINUTES.
UM, JENNIFER, I HAVE A, UH, FOUND SOMETHING THAT NEEDS TO BE CORRECTED ON THE NOVEMBER 7TH MINUTES.
NOT A BIG DEAL, BUT UM, IT SAYS, BUT IT'S THE REGULAR, NOVEMBER THREE, NOVEMBER 3RD AT MEETING MINUTES.
UM, BUT THEN IN THAT FIRST PARAGRAPH TO THE RIGHT OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN SYMBOL, IT, UH, SAYS THAT WE MET ON SEPTEMBER 7TH.
WE HA I HAVE ALREADY GOT THAT, UM, MARKED MY MINUTES HERE.
UM, YOU PASS THE TEST ANYONE ELSE, BUT I WILL MOVE APPROVAL OF BOND WITH THAT CORRECTION.
UM, DO I HAVE A SECOND? SARA'S OKAY, GREAT.
ANY OPPOSED? ANY ABSTENTIONS? OKAY.
SO WE, UM, WE HAVE A LOT ON THE AGENDA TODAY.
WE PLANNED THIS REALLY GREAT AGENDA FOR OUR FIRST MEETING OF THE YEAR AND WE HAD TO DELAY IT BECAUSE OF, BECAUSE EVERYBODY HAD COVID UM, HOPEFULLY EVERYONE'S WELL NOW, BUT, UM, SO WE'RE GONNA, WE PLANNED THIS A LITTLE WHILE AGO, BUT UH, WE'RE GONNA MOVE THROUGH IT.
WE ARE GOING TO MOVE ITEM D UP AFTER B THE AQUIFER STORAGE AND RECOVERY PILOT IS GOING TO GO AFTER B.
UM, IS THAT STILL THE ORDER WE WANT TO GO IN EVERYBODY? YES.
[2.a. Water supply update]
SO LET'S GO AHEAD AND DO ITEM A AND I BELIEVE IS THAT GOING TO BE MERISSA DURING THE BRIEFING TODAY? SARAH WILL BE GIVING US OUR WATER SUPPLY UPDATES.UM, WE'RE GOING TO DO D AFTER, AFTER ITEM B, I BELIEVE WE'RE JUST MOVING IT UP.
ONE THING IN THE AGENDA, RIGHT? SO WATER SUPPLY, UPDATE WATER FOR 2018 IMPLEMENTATION UPDATE, AQUIFER, STORAGE AND RECOVERY, AND THEN THE WATER FOR 2024 OVERVIEW.
LET'S GO AHEAD AND TURN IT OVER TO YOU.
I'M ALWAYS CONFUSING WITH MULTIPLE SARAH'S, BUT HI, EVERYONE'S NICE TO SEE YOU ALL IN YOUR LITTLE SQUARES.
UM, WATER SUPPLY UPDATE ON THE NEXT SLIDE.
HERE'S THE OVERVIEW OF OUR HISTORICAL COMBINED STORAGE IN TRAVIS AND CANON.
AS YOU CAN SEE, WE'RE JUST UNDER 1.6 MILLION.
[00:05:04]
NEXT SLIDE.THAT IS ONE PART OF THE STORY, BUT THE OTHER PART OF THE STORY IS THE INFLOWS TO THE HIGHLAND LAKES.
AND YOU CAN SEE JUST OUR LITTLE JANUARY BAR IN GREEN THERE FOR 2022, PRETTY LOW INFLOWS, 2021 ALSO RANKED PRETTY LOW ON THE INFLOWS COMING INTO THE LAKES.
UM, HOWEVER, WE'VE GOT THE, YEAH, THE 1942 TO PRESENT AVERAGE TO COMPARE TO, AND OUR MORE RECENT HISTORICAL AVERAGE, NEXT SLIDE JUST REMINDS US OF WHY THIS IS ALL VERY IMPORTANT.
UM, SPITE OF THE LOW INFLOWS, THE LAKE LEVELS ARE LOOKING PRETTY GOOD.
AND YOU CAN SEE THAT IF WE ARE TO FOLLOW THE MEDIAN OF THE PROJECTIONS AND THE BLUE DOTTED LINE, WE STAY ABOVE THE STAGE ONE DROUGHT RESTRICTIONS.
UH, IF IT GETS A LITTLE BIT DRYER, WE'D START TO DROP DOWN TO ABOUT 1.4 MILLION ACRE FEET OF COMBINED STORAGE.
UM, WE ARE OF COURSE, CONTINUALLY MONITORING AND WE'LL RESPOND AS NEEDED AND COMMUNICATE ALL THAT NEXT SLIDE.
AND WE ALSO INCLUDED THE NOAA THREE MONTHS OUTLOOK, WHICH HAS SOME PRETTY INTERESTING PROJECTIONS.
UM, UNFORTUNATELY YOU SEE, TEXAS HAS BELOW AVERAGE PRECIPITATION OUTLOOK AND AN ABOVE AVERAGE SEASONAL TEMPERATURE OUTLOOK, JUST NOT SO GOOD FOR OUR WATER SUPPLIES.
I HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE TASK FORCE MEMBERS FOR SARAH? I HAVE ONE QUESTION ON THE SLIDE WITH THE, UM, PROJECTIONS.
IT LOOKED LIKE YOU HAD ON THE GRAPH THROUGH AUGUST OF 2020 TO GO BACK TO THAT, THE LAKE LEVEL PROJECTIONS, I THINK, YEAH, THE STORAGE PROJECTIONS.
I WAS JUST WONDERING IF YOU GO ANY FURTHER OUT THAN AUGUST, LIKE WHAT THE FALL MIGHT LOOK LIKE.
CAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE IF IT'S DROPPING LIKE THAT SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER MIGHT BE CHALLENGING.
I DON'T THINK THAT WE HAVE THAT PROJECTION OUT THAT FAR RIGHT NOW.
I THINK THAT GETS UPDATED AS WE MOVE A LITTLE CLOSER.
MARIE, ARE YOU THAT'S CORRECT.
THESE PROJECTIONS ARE DEVELOPED BY THE LOWER COLORADO RIVER AUTHORITY AND, UM, THE DON'T GO OUT, UH, ANY FURTHER.
THEY UPDATE THIS ON A REGULAR BASIS ON A MONTHLY BASIS.
AND SO AS THESE PROJECTIONS ARE UPDATED, WE'LL BE ABLE TO SEE A LITTLE BIT FURTHER OUT INTO THE FUTURE AND WE'LL BE MONITORING THAT AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
AND, AND I'LL JUST SAY I WAS DOING SOME, YOU KNOW, ARMCHAIR HYDROLOGY AS ONE DOES.
UM, LOOKING AT HYDRO MET, UM, YOU KNOW, THE WEEK THAT WE HAD A BUNCH OF RAIN AND CENTRAL AUSTIN WHERE I LIVE GOT JUST ABOUT FIVE INCHES AT ALL AND IT WAS GREAT.
UM, BUT YOU KNOW, YOU CAN ZOOM BACK OUT AND LOOK AT THE WATERSHED AND ALL THE WATERSHEDS THAT GO INTO THE HIGHLAND LAKES GOT, UM, AN EDGE, MAYBE TWO INCHES, BUT I HAD A LOT OF AREAS, YOU KNOW, AN INCH OR LESS.
SO IT WAS REMINDING ME BACK OF THE DROUGHT, THE, THE DEEP DROUGHT WE EXPERIENCED RECENTLY, WE KEPT GETTING THESE RAINFALL EVENTS, BUT THEY WERE, UM, LADY BIRD LAKE, WHICH IS GREAT FOR INFLOWS AND BAY AND EVERYTHING.
IT'S A GREAT RESOURCE TO LOOK AT.
UM, DOES HE, HELPINGS ARE FALLING AND THEN TO GO BACK A FEW DAYS LATER AND SEE HOW INFLOWS ARE TRACKING WITH THAT.
THANKS, Y'ALL FOR PUTTING IT TOGETHER EVERY TIME LET'S GO AHEAD AND MOVE ON TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM, UNLESS WE HAVE ANY MORE QUESTIONS AND THAT WILL BE WATERFORD 2018 IMPLEMENTATION PROGRESS.
SO I'LL BE PRESENTING THAT ONE, GIVE IT A MOMENT MORE THAN BRING UP OUR SLIDE.
[2.b. Water Forward 2018 implementation and FY21 update]
PERFECT.SO THIS REPORT IS PROVIDED IN THE FORMAT THAT YOU ARE USED TO SEEING, UH, IT'S A TWO PAGE ORDERLY
[00:10:01]
REPORT.THIS IS OUR QUARTER ONE REPORT ON THE LEFT-HAND SIDE OF THE SLIDE.
WE HAVE LINE ITEMS FOR OUR VARIOUS STRATEGIES.
UM, IN THE FIRST LIGHT COLUMN, WE HAVE OUR FYI 22 Q1 PROGRESS TO DATE.
WE HAVE INFORMATION ABOUT THE NEXT QUARTER CURRENT OR PLANNED ACTIVITIES.
AND THEN AT THE FAR RIGHT, WE HAVE FUTURE IMPLEMENTATION STEPS, TRYING TO LOOK OUT A LITTLE BIT LONGER TERM, UH, LOOK THROUGH SOME OF OUR MAJOR MILESTONES HERE IN TERMS OF PROGRESS TO DATE AND JUST TOUCH ON SOME OF OUR NEXT STEPS OR WHAT ARE FOR 2024.
WE'RE GOING TO TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE AND MORE DETAIL ABOUT OUR PROGRESS AND NEXT STEP.
SO I'LL GO AHEAD AND SKIP OVER THAT ONE, JUST IN THE INTEREST OF TIME, KNOWING WE HAVE A LOT OF CONTENT TO GET THROUGH ON THE CONSERVATION LINE ITEM, AS IT RELATES TO MY HEX WATER, THAT'S OUR ADVANCED METERING INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT WE HAVE NOW, UH, BROUGHT THE TOTAL NUMBER OF METERS INSTALLED TO 27,000.
AND OUR, MY ATX WATER CUSTOMER PORTAL IS CURRENTLY AT A 40% ADOPTION RATE.
WE'LL CONTINUE SURVEYS AND INSTALLS ACROSS THE CITY WITH THE GOAL OF INSTALLING OVER 250,000 METERS.
UM, WITHIN THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS ON THE NEXT LINE, OUR LANDSCAPE TRANSFORMATION ORDINANCE, OUR CONSERVATION STAFF HAS DEVELOPED A PROJECT PLAN.
THEY PRESENTED TO THE WATERFORD TASKFORCE AT THE NOVEMBER MEETING.
SO THOSE WHO ARE INTERESTED IN THAT ITEM CAN GO BACK TO OUR LAST RECORDED MEETING AND GET AN UPDATE THERE.
UM, WE, UH, HAVE ALSO BEEN WORKING ON PREPARING FOR STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT AND OUR CONSERVATION DIVISION HAS ALSO ESTABLISHED A SPEAK-UP OSTEON PAGE.
OUR NEXT STEPS WILL INCLUDE HOLDING AN ONLINE STAKEHOLDER MEETING, UH, FOCUSED ON PROFESSIONAL SLASH ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS.
UM, WELL THAT WAS ACTUALLY A MEETING THAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY.
UM, AND, UH, FOLLOWING THAT AN ONLINE PUBLIC MEETING WILL BE TAKING PLACE FEBRUARY 23RD.
SO THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE INTERESTED IN THAT, UM, PLEASE LET US KNOW AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO SHARE INFORMATION, ALTHOUGH YOU WILL ALSO BE ABLE TO FIND THAT INFORMATION ON THE SPEAK OF BOSTON PAGE UP FOR THAT PROJECT, IN TERMS OF DROUGHT SUPPLIES, AQUIFER, STORAGE, AND RECOVERY.
WE AGAIN ARE GOING TO BE HAVING THE PRESENTATION HERE FROM OUR PROJECT MANAGER, HELEN GERLACH, AS WELL AS OUR TECHNICAL CONSULTANT AT CHRISTIE SHALLA HERE IS HERE FROM HDR.
SO I'LL GO AHEAD AND GIVE THEM A OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK MORE TO THAT PROJECT.
BUT I WILL JUST MENTION THAT THE TEAM HAS BEEN DOING EXCELLENT WORK, CONTINUING DOWN THAT DETAILED STORAGE ZONE SCREENING, WORKING TOWARDS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
UM, THAT WILL BE BEGINNING HERE IN SPRING 2022.
YOU CAN MOVE FORWARD TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
WE'VE GOT, OH, YOU CAN ROLL BACK ONE.
I KNOW THEY LOOK VERY SIMILAR.
UM, THE FIRST LINE ITEM HERE, ONSITE WATER REUSE, OUR TEAM CONTINUES, OR OUR ONSITE WATER REUSE TEAM CONTINUES TO REVIEW, UM, APPLICATIONS THAT ARE RECEIVED AND TO INCORPORATE THAT REVIEW PROCESS INTO THE CITY'S DEVELOPMENT REVIEW SYSTEM.
AND, UM, WE ARE CONTINUING TO WORK TOWARDS COMMISSIONING THE OSCAR AND CLARA PILOT, AND THAT'S BEEN A PHASE TO FEW DELAYS JUST BECAUSE OF THE PANDEMIC AND OTHER ISSUES, BUT WE'RE HOPING TO, UM, A COMPLETE THAT ACTIVITY WITHIN THIS QUARTER, UH, IN TERMS OF CENTRALIZED RECLAIMED, UM, OUR STAFF HAS CONTINUING TO SUPPORT RECLAIMED INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS.
FOR EXAMPLE, AT THE MONTOPOLIS TANK AND PUMP STATION CONTINUES TO SUPPORT ONGOING, UH, DEVELOPMENT REVIEW AND CONTINUING DESIGN OF COMPLETING THE CORE MAINS TO BUILD OUT THAT, UM, SYSTEM, UH, WITHIN AN ALIGNMENT WITH OUR COMPLETING THE CORE PLAN.
UM, IN TERMS OF DECENTRALIZED RECLAIMED, SOME MAJOR MILESTONES HAVE BEEN REACHED.
THERE ARE AUSTIN WATER STAFF HAS PREPARED SOME DRAFT, UH, DECENTRALIZED RECLAIMED AREA PLANS, OR, UM, TWO DIFFERENT AREAS, WILD HORSE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT AND PEER SLAIN WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLAN.
THAT'S IN ALIGNMENT WITH OUR OVERALL WATERBOARD PLAN.
WE'RE VERY EXCITED TO SEE THAT, UM, PLANNING WORK MODE MOVING FORWARD.
THEY'RE GOING TO CONTINUE WORKING ON DEVELOPING ADDITIONAL PLANS, UM, FOR THESE SMALL AREA PLANNING, POLYGONS AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
UM, AND THEN OUR LAST LINE ITEM HERE, COACHING, THIS IS KIND OF ROUNDING OUT THE COUNCIL APPROVED CODE CHANGES OF, UH, FROM SEPTEMBER, 2021.
UM, THOSE CODE CHANGES ARE RELATED TO WATER BENCHMARKING, ONSITE, WATER REUSE SYSTEMS, REQUIREMENTS, AND EXTENSION OF OUR CURRENT RECLAIMED WATER CONNECTION REQUIREMENTS.
UM, STAFF HAS, UH, PREPARED FOR AND OVERSAW THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE WATER BENCHMARKING APPLICATION AND EXTENSION OF RECLAIMED WATER CONNECTION REQUIREMENTS.
UH, DECEMBER 1ST, 2021, THE WATER BENCHMARKING APPLICATION IS NOW LIVE.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO VIEW THAT.
[00:15:01]
TO VISIT OUR WEBSITE AND PUT A LINK TO THE ACTUAL WATER BENCHMARKING APPLICATION.UM, WITHIN THE REPORT, UM, OUR STAFF IS CONTINUING TO WORK TOWARDS, UM, THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN AFFORDABILITY IMPACT REPORT, UM, THAT, UH, WAS A PART OF THE APPROVED CODE CHANGES.
UM, AND, UH, THAT REPORT WILL BE DELIVERED TO COUNCIL BY SEPTEMBER, 2023.
UM, THAT'S IN ADVANCE OF THE ONSITE WATER REUSE MANDATE LANGUAGE THAT WILL GO INTO EFFECT DECEMBER 1ST, 2023.
I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT FOLKS MIGHT HAVE.
UM, I'VE GOT A FEW QUESTIONS, BUT FIRST, UH, TASKFORCE, ANY QUESTIONS OUT THERE IN VIRTUAL LAND, TODD? YEAH.
TH THIS, UM, THANK YOU FOR THE UPDATE.
IT SEEMS LIKE A LOT OF REALLY GOOD WORK IN PROGRESS.
I DON'T KNOW HOW TO COMPARE IT TO WHAT WE LAID OUT IN THE PLAN AND WHAT OUR EXPECTATIONS WERE.
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON HOW OFTEN WE GO COMPARE PROGRESS ON THE VARIOUS INITIATIVES VERSUS WHAT THE, WHAT THE PLAN WAS THAT WAS APPROVED BY COUNCIL? YEAH, THAT'S A GREAT POINT.
I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, WITH OUR ANNUAL REPORTS AND, YOU KNOW, WE'RE HOPING TO HAVE AN ANNUAL REPORT, UH, PRODUCED VERY SOON, A FINAL DRAFT, A VERSION OF OUR ANNUAL REPORT.
THAT'S READY TO SHARE VERY SOON.
WE'RE ABLE TO TAKE A LITTLE BIT OF A DEEPER DIVE AND LOOK MORE CLOSELY AT HOW WE'RE ALIGNING WITH OUR, YOU KNOW, 20 YEAR IMPLEMENTATION TIMELINE.
UM, THAT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO DO THAT.
IF THERE IS ADDITIONAL INFORMATION THAT WE COULD INCLUDE TO PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT MORE INSIGHT AS TO HOW WE'RE TRACKING, UM, WITH IMPLEMENTATION.
I THINK WE CAN, WE CAN WORK ON DOING THAT.
UM, WE ARE TRYING TO KEEP THIS A LITTLE BIT HIGHER AND LEVEL A REPORT, UM, THAT IS PROVIDED WITHIN THIS KIND OF QUARTERLY CONTEXT.
UM, WE HAD TALKED ABOUT, AND I THINK THAT WE HAVE SHARED ROBERT MACE HAD, UH, THE VICE-CHAIR HAD PUT TOGETHER SOME POSSIBLE GRAPHICS, UM, AND THAT MIGHT BE PART OF LIKE AN ANNUAL REPORT TYPE THING, BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, I SEE THAT Y'ALL HAVE ADDED THIS, THE YIELD TARGET, WHICH IS HELPFUL SO WE CAN KNOW KIND OF WHAT EACH, EACH STRATEGY WILL YIELD, BUT, UM, IF THERE WAS LIKE A PROGRESS OR SOMETHING, OR, OR ACRE FEET, YOU KNOW, ANNUAL ACRE FEET SAVED FOR EACH ONE, UM, MAYBE THAT'S EVEN JUST TAKEN FROM THE ANNUAL REPORT.
AND JUST KNOWING THAT YOU'LL, UH, YOU'RE NOT TRYING TO UPDATE THAT QUARTERLY, BUT IT JUST PROVIDES A LITTLE CONTEXT.
UM, BUT THIS IS, BUT THIS IS REALLY GOOD.
UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THE TASK FORCE? OKAY.
ONE IS ONCE A COMMENT, REALLY, UM, THE LANDSCAPE ORDINANCE TRANSFORMATION MEETING THAT HAPPENED LAST NIGHT.
UM, I'VE GOT FORWARDED IT FROM SOMEBODY, UM, LIKE ABOUT 15 MINUTES BEFORE IT HAPPENED FOR THESE KINDS OF THINGS.
CAN WE MAKE SURE THAT THE TASK FORCE MEMBERS, SINCE THESE ARE STRATEGIES AND THE PLAN, YOU KNOW, THAT THEY MIGHT WANT THAT JUST AS A, AS A MATTER OF COURSE, THAT THEY'RE ADDED TO THOSE LISTS OR THAT THESE, THESE NOTICES ARE AFFORDED TO TASK FORCE MEMBERS BECAUSE, UM, PEOPLE MAY WANT TO PARTICIPATE IN DEFINITELY THE NEXT ONE ON THE 23RD.
UM, CAUSE I WAS, I WAS LIKE, WHOA, THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN GREAT TO GO TO.
UM, CAUSE YOU KNOW, I'M ALWAYS LOOKING FOR MORE MEETINGS.
AND I KNOW THAT THAT'S JUST A LOT TO KEEP TRACK OF.
UM, BUT YEAH, IF WE CAN JUST, OR IF THERE'S, I NOTICED IT CAME FROM WHAT GOT FORWARDED TO ME, IT LOOKED LIKE A LIST, LIKE A WATER CON CONSERVATION LIKE LIST.
SO MAYBE WE CAN JUST ADD ALL THE TASK FORCE MEMBERS, SORRY FOR YOUR INBOXES, EVERYONE.
AND LET'S LET LET SOMEONE KNOW IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE ON IT.
BUT I FEEL LIKE SINCE THAT'S THE LANDSCAPE ORDINANCE PARTICULAR IS DIRECTLY RELATED TO THE WATERFORD PLAN.
UM, THE OTHER THING IS I WAS WONDERING IF YOU COULD SAY A LITTLE BIT MORE, YOU SAID THAT THE STAFF, UM, UNDER ONSITE WATER REUSE THE STAFFER, REVIEWING APPLICATIONS AND INCORPORATING, UM, SO CAN YOU JUST SAY A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT? IS IT, WELL, I WON'T GUESS WHAT IT IS.
UM, SO, UH, HERE'S SOME OF THE STATS THAT I KNOW, UM, AND IN TERMS OF BENCHMARKING APPLICATIONS, SINCE DECEMBER 1ST, 2021, THE, UH, REQUIREMENTS EFFECTIVE DATE, WE'VE RECEIVED 13, UH, COMPLETE APPLICATIONS AND SIX HAVE BEEN GREATER THAN 250,000 SQUARE FEET.
UM, THERE IS SOME LAG IN THE NUMBER OF APPLICATIONS THAT WE'RE RECEIVING JUST TO, UM, YOU KNOW, DEVELOPERS, UH, AND FOLKS IN THE DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY'S AWARENESS OF, UH, THESE REQUIREMENTS.
AND, UM, AS FOLKS ARE BUILDING UP THEIR AWARENESS, WE ANTICIPATE RECEIVING ADDITIONAL
[00:20:01]
APPLICATIONS ON THE BENCHMARKING SIDE, UM, IN TERMS OF, UH, ON-SITE REUSE SYSTEM APPLICATIONS.UH, WE RECEIVED ABOUT THREE APPLICATIONS IN 2021 AND 2022 THAT ARE CURRENTLY WITHIN REVIEW.
UM, AND OUR STAFF HAS ALSO FAILED TO MULTIPLE INQUIRIES ABOUT POTENTIAL ON-SITE REUSE, UH, PROJECTS.
AND THEN AGAIN, AS THOSE, UM, UH, SITE PLAN APPLICATIONS COME IN FOR DEVELOPMENTS GREATER THAN 250,000 SQUARE FEET, OUR STAFF WILL BE MEETING WITH THOSE TEAMS AND DISCUSSING POSSIBLE OPPORTUNITIES FOR CONSERVATION OR EFFICIENCY IMPROVEMENTS AS WELL AS ON-SITE REUSE OR OTHER, UM, RECLAIM WATER OPPORTUNITIES.
UM, AND THEN, UM, YOU KNOW, I GUESS LET ME, LET ME PAUSE THERE AND SEE IF THAT'S THE KIND OF INFORMATION YOU THAT'S EXACTLY THE KIND OF INFORMATION I'M LOOKING FOR.
HOW HAVE WE SEEN ANY APPLICATIONS FOR THE, UM, INCENTIVE FUNDS FROM THE CITY OF AUSTIN FOR ON-SITE REUSE, UM, UH, SYSTEMS? YES, THERE WERE TWO APPLICATIONS FOR THE ON-SITE REUSE, UM, THE INCENTIVE, UH, AND LET'S SEE, I THINK RIGHT NOW THEY'RE KIND OF WORKING THROUGH NEXT STEPS, UM, IN THAT PROCESS, UM, TO, YOU KNOW, UH, POSSIBLY LOOK AT, UM, UH, AWARDING FUNDING.
I'M NOT SURE IF WE'RE AT A POINT THAT WHERE WE CAN, WHERE, UH, THAT'S FINALIZED ENOUGH TO KIND OF SHARE THAT AS A DONE DEAL.
I WOULD BE GOOD, UM, IN THE FUTURE AS THIS ROLLS OUT, LIKE, CAUSE THIS IS A PILOT, UM, FOR US TO KIND OF WORK OUT THE KINKS AND SEE HOW IT'S GOING TO WORK AS WE MOVE INTO THE MANDATORY PHASE FOUR, MAYBE IT MIGHT BE MORE APPROPRIATE TO DO THIS IN A SUB COMMITTEE.
I'M NOT SURE MAYBE THE FULL TASK FORCE, BUT TO KIND OF LIKE, WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED WHAT'S HAPPENING? HOW'S THE PROCESS WORKING, YOU KNOW, JUST TO KIND OF GIVE AN OVERVIEW, A LITTLE BIT OF A DEEP DIVE AND HOW THAT'S WORKING BECAUSE THERE WILL BE, YOU KNOW, UM, WE'LL HAVE TO PUT SPECIFICITY AROUND THIS PROGRAM AND UNDERSTAND, I THINK IT WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR THE TASKFORCE TO DIG INTO THAT A LITTLE BIT.
UM, IT'S, IT'S A LITTLE FRESH RIGHT NOW, BUT I'M GLAD THAT THINGS ARE MOVING THROUGH THE SYSTEM AND WE CAN LEARN FROM IT.
SO WE CAN DEFINITELY DIVE INTO OKAY.
I BELIEVE WE HAVE ASR NEXT, THE VIDEO THAT WE KEEP TRYING TO START, IT'S ACTUALLY TIME TO START IT.
BLESS THERE'S SOMETHING TO SAY BEFORE THE VIDEO STARTS.
I THINK, WELL, NOTHING TO SAY NECESSARILY JUST THAT, UM, AS I MENTIONED, HELEN, LIFE IS GOING TO BE GIVING, UH, OUR PRESENTATION AND WE ALSO HAVE CHRISTIE'S SHOW WITH US, UM, FROM HDR.
UM, UH, MAYBE I'LL JUST GIVE THEM AN OPPORTUNITY TO SAY HELLO BEFORE WE START THE VIDEO.
AND THEN WE CAN DIVE RIGHT INTO, UM, THE VIDEO SHARE HELEN AND WANT TO JUST GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF CONTEXT AS TO WHAT THIS VIDEO IS FOR.
HEAR ME? YOU HEAR ME BETTER NOW.
AND WE DID HAVE A FEW SLIDES TO KIND OF LEAD INTO THE VIDEO IF WE WANT TO PULL THOSE UP.
OTHERWISE I CAN JUST, UM, I CAN JUST TALK TO WHATEVER WE WANT TO DO.
WE CAN GO AHEAD AND GO THROUGH OUR SLIDES.
IT LOOKS LIKE HALFWAY THROUGH THE VIDEO SHOWING UP RIGHT NOW.
[2.d. Aquifer Storage and Recovery pilot i. Task progress to date: community engagement and initial pilot screening results]
PROVIDING, UM, AN UPDATE ON OUR ASR PILOT PROGRAM MANAGEMENT PROJECT TODAY.UM, I'LL UH, GIVE YOU GUYS AN INTRO AND THEN WE'VE GOT CHRISTY SHAW HERE FROM HDR TO KIND OF PROVIDE SOME MORE DETAIL ON SOME OF THE WORK WE'VE BEEN DOING.
UM, SO IF YOU WANT TO GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, UM, WE'VE GOT A LITTLE L SCHEDULE OVERVIEW HERE FOR YOU GUYS.
UM, JUST TO SHOW YOU KIND OF THE WORK WE'VE BEEN DOING AND WHAT WE'RE PLANNING TO DO OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS.
UM, SO WE'VE COMPLETED, UM, THE BULK OF OUR CHARTER CHARTERING WORK.
THAT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST STEPS.
AND, UM, SINCE THEN HAVE BEEN WORKING MOSTLY ON OUR STORAGE ZONE ANALYSIS, WHICH IS LOOKING AT, UM, THE DIFFERENT AQUIFERS.
AND WE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT THAT MORE IN THIS PRESENTATION, AS WELL AS WORKING ON OUR INTEGRATION POINT ANALYSIS, WHICH IS LOOKING AT OUR AUSTIN, AUSTIN WATERSIDE, UM, POTENTIAL TIE-IN POINTS FOR THE ASR AND CHARACTERIZING THIS POINTS FOR FAVORIBILITY AS A POSSIBLE PLACE TO, UM, LINK TO THE ASR SYSTEM.
WE'VE ALSO BEEN WORKING ON OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, UM, AND PLANNING FOR, UM, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT THAT WILL BE STARTING IN SPRING OF THIS YEAR.
UM, AND AS RAISA SAY, UH, ONE OF THOSE ITEMS WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON IS AN ASR VIDEO.
UM, WE'RE CALLING IT OUR ASR EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS.
[00:25:01]
OF EXPLAINS A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHAT THE ASR TECHNOLOGY IS AND WHY AUSTIN WATER'S PLANS FOR ASR ARE.SO IF WE WANT TO GO AHEAD AND ADVANCE, UM, I BELIEVE THAT VIDEO IS THE NEXT SLIDE.
AFTER THIS, THE LOWER COLORADO RIVER IS A SOURCE OF DRINKING WATER FOR MANY TEXANS, INCLUDING THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UPSTREAM OF AUSTIN, SEVERAL DAMS ON THE RIVER FORM, A CHAIN OF LAKES KNOWN AS THE HIGHLAND LAKES IN 2008, A SEVERE DROUGHT HIT CENTRAL TEXAS.
IT LASTED UNTIL 2016, REDUCING WATER IN THE HIGHLAND LAKES TO HISTORICALLY LOW LEVELS IN RESPONSE TO THIS DROUGHT, AUSTIN WATER CREATED WATER FORWARD, A PLAN TO GUIDE AUSTIN'S WATER FUTURE FOR THE NEXT 100 YEARS IN THE FUTURE, CLIMATE EXPERTS EXPECT MORE SEVERE DROUGHTS IN CENTRAL TEXAS INTERRUPTED BY PERIODS OF MORE INTENSE RAIN.
AS OUR CLIMATE CHANGES, IT WILL BE MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER TO MANAGE OUR WATER RESOURCES WISELY, AQUIFER STORAGE AND RECOVERY, OR ASR IS ONE OF SEVERAL WATER SUPPLY PROJECTS INCLUDED IN THE WATER FORWARD PLAN, ALONG WITH REUSE AND CONSERVATION STRATEGIES.
OTHER CITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND IN TEXAS ARE ALREADY USING ASR SYSTEMS, INCLUDING SAN ANTONIO, EL PASO, AND KERRVILLE.
WHEN WATER SUPPLIES ARE PLENTIFUL AVAILABLE WATER FROM AUSTIN'S DRINKING WATER SYSTEM IS PUMPED INTO AN AQUIFER TO BE STORED.
HOCHUL FERRIES ARE CREATED BY LAYERS OF DIFFERENT KINDS OF ROCK BELOW THE GROUND THAT CAN HOLD LARGE AMOUNTS OF WATER.
STORING WATER UNDERGROUND IN AN AQUIFER HELPS PREVENT WATER LOSS FROM EVAPORATION.
WHEN AUSTIN'S REGULAR WATER SUPPLY BECOMES LOW.
THE WATER THAT AUSTIN WATER IS STORED IN THE ASR PROJECT CAN BE PUMPED OUT AND DELIVERED TO CUSTOMERS.
AND BECAUSE ASRS HAD FEWER ABOVE GROUND REQUIREMENTS THAN OTHER WATER PROJECTS, THEY CAN HELP PRESERVE THE LAND ABOVE THE AQUIFER FOR OTHER USES.
I THINK IF IT, AS A SAVINGS ACCOUNT, WALTER IS DEPOSITED INTO THE APPLE FOR STORAGE AND RECOVERY SYSTEM DURING WHAT YEARS.
AND WE CAN WITHDRAW THAT WATER WHEN WE NEED IT DURING DRY YEARS OR EMERGENCIES FOR STORAGE AND RECOVERY WILL MAKE AUSTIN'S WATER SUPPLY MORE RESILIENT TO CLIMATE CHANGE AND DROUGHT, AND COULD PROVIDE A SECOND SOURCE OF WATER DURING EMERGENCIES LIKE TREES, EVENTS, OR FLOODING IN 2021, AUSTIN WATER BEGAN A STUDY TO SEE WHICH AQUIFERS IN OUR REGION COULD BE FAVORABLE FOR A FUTURE ASR PROJECT.
COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF THIS PROCESS.
SO WE'LL BE REACHING OUT THROUGHOUT THE STUDY TO SHARE PRELIMINARY INFORMATION, COLLECT FEEDBACK, AND ANSWER QUESTIONS.
ONCE WE IDENTIFY AN AQUIFER THAT COULD MEET THE PROJECT NEEDS AUSTIN WATER PLANS TO BUILD A PILOT ASR PROJECT FOR TESTING AND APPLE FOR STORAGE AND RECOVERY SYSTEM FOR AUSTIN IS PLAN TO BE FULLY OPERATIONAL AND STORING WATER BY 2035, AWFUL PER STORAGE AND RECOVERY IS JUST ONE PIECE OF AUSTIN'S WATER FORWARD PLAN TO SAFEGUARD OUR WATER RESOURCES NOW, AND IN THE FUTURE, VISIT OUR WEBSITE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT AQUIFER FOR STORAGE AND RECOVERY AND HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED.
SO THAT'S OUR ASR EDUCATIONAL VIDEO.
UH, IT WAS COMING THROUGH A LITTLE CHOPPY ON MY END, BUT WE'LL HOPEFULLY HAVE THAT, UM, WORK WITH OUR PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE TO GET THAT UP ON OUR WEBSITE SOON.
AND EVERYONE CAN WATCH IT WHENEVER THEY LIKE.
UM, IT WAS IN THE VERY WELL DONE AT THE INNOVATION WAS GREAT.
I COULD ACTUALLY ONLY UNMUTE PERIOD.
COULDN'T GET THROUGH ON THE SCREEN FOR WHATEVER REASON, JUST TO LET YOU KNOW.
D CAN YOU, UM, OH, IS THIS CAMERA ON THOUGH? REPAIRING? YES.
I CANNOT GET PERRY ON THE SCREEN.
THEY'RE ONLY ON AUDIO RIGHT NOW.
HE NEED TO TURN ON HIS CAMERA.
UH, IF FOR WHATEVER REASON THERE'S A CONNECTION ISSUE.
[00:30:01]
IT JUST TAKES A WHILE OR SOMETIMES THEY NEED TO RESTART THEIR COMPUTER, BUT LET ME SEE WHAT'S GOING ON, BUT I CAN'T MAKE THEM A PANEL SET RIGHT NOW.WELL THEN ARE YOU SPEAKING? AND WE CAN GO OVER HERE, HELEN EVERYBODY NOW.
UM, DO WE NEED TO WAIT UNTIL PERRY'S BACK TO CONTINUE? NO, WE HAVE A QUORUM WITHOUT PERRY.
HE JUST SAID WE HAVE TO HAVE HIS VIDEO ON AND HAVE HIM AS PART OF THIS TO COUNT HIM AS THE QUORUM.
I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT EVEN THOUGH HE'S NOT COUNTING TOWARDS I SEE THAT PERRY AND HELEN ARE BOTH SPEAKING.
CAUSE SOME LITTLE THINGS COMING UP ON MY SCREEN, BUT I DON'T HEAR IT.
ONE OF THEM CAN YOU HEAR US? THIS IS DAV TOOK.
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? JUST CAN'T SEE ME, BUT WE CAN HEAR YOU.
WE HAVE TWO OR SLIDES TO GET THROUGH, SO AS LONG AS THE MICROPHONE HOLDS.
SO THIS IS, UM, THAT SAME SCHEDULE OVERVIEW THAT WE LOOKED AT BEFORE.
UM, JUST HIGHLIGHTING THAT WILL BE, UH, DID YOU GET TO OUR ASR STORAGE ZONE ANALYSIS A LITTLE BIT MORE TODAY? GIVE YOU GUYS SOME INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON FOR THIS TASK FOR.
COULD YOU GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE? OKAY.
SO, UM, WE HAVE TWO MAIN PARTS OF WHAT WE'RE CALLING TASK FOUR, WHICH AGAIN IS OUR ASR STORAGE AND ANALYSIS.
UM, THE FIRST PART IS OUR HIGH-LEVEL SCREENING, UM, WHICH IS LED, UH, LETTING US CAST A WIDE, UM, LOOK AT A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT AREAS AND THEN SPRAIN, UM, THE STORAGE.
SO IT'S DOWN TO FIGURE OUT WHERE WE WANT TO DO, UM, OUR DETAILED MAPPING SO WE CAN MAXIMIZE OUR RESOURCES THERE.
AND SO THE SECOND PART OF THIS TASK FOUR WILL BE TO PERFORM THAT DETAILED MAPPING AND THAT'LL BE GENERATING THAT VIRGINIA'S, UH, ASR SUITABILITY IN THOSE, UM, SCREENING AREAS THAT WE IDENTIFIED.
AND THAT'LL BE, UH, PRODUCING MAPS, UH, SORT OF LIKE THE EXAMPLE SHOWS THERE FROM TEGA BGP, UM, WHERE YOU HAVE COVERAGES INDICATING, UM, FAVORABLE AREAS FOR ASR.
UM, YOU GOT THE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
AND SO TODAY WE'RE GOING TO BE FOCUSING ON HOME, THE FIRST PART, UM, OUR HIGH LEVEL SCREENING.
UM, SO AGAIN, CASTING A WIDE NET AND THEN SCREENING, UM, THOSE AREAS DOWN TO IDENTIFY WHERE WE WANT TO FOCUS OUR RESOURCES FOR THAT DETAILED MAPPING.
AND SO WE HAVE CHRISTY SHAW HERE FROM HDR, WHO WE'LL BE TALKING MORE ABOUT WHAT WE DID FOR THAT HIGH LEVEL SCREENING.
AND I WILL GO AHEAD AND PASS IT ON TO HER.
I AM CHRISTY SHAW WITH HDR ENGINEERING AND I AM A WATER RESOURCES ENGINEER, AND I HAVE THE PLEASURE OF SERVING AS THE DEPUTY PM ON THIS APP FOR STORAGE AND RECOVERY PROJECT FOR AUSTIN WATER.
I'M GOING TO WALK THROUGH A FEW SLIDES HERE AND JUST SUMMARIZE WHERE WE ARE TODAY ON OUR STORAGE.
SO IN ANALYSIS, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.
FOR THE INITIAL SCREENING, WE LOOKED AT TRAVIS COUNTY AND SURROUNDING AREAS TO EVALUATE OC FOR STORAGE ZONES.
THIS ANALYSIS WAS CONDUCTED FOR EIGHT COUNTIES IN TOTAL, THE MAJOR AQUIFERS THAT WE CONSIDERED OR THE TRINITY EDWARDS AND KARESA WILCOX, THE TRINITY INCREASE, THE WILCOX AQUIFERS ARE REALLY BIG SYSTEMS WITH A GOOD AMOUNT OF VARIABILITY.
SO FOR THOSE IN PARTICULAR, WE SUBDIVIDED INTO UNITS TO GET MORE GRANULAR INFORMATION ON AQUIFER PROPERTIES, TO LOOK AT POTENTIAL STORAGE NEXT SLIME.
[00:35:01]
AQUIFERS OVER THIS SAME GEOGRAPHIC AREA.THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MAJOR AND MINOR AQUIFERS IS THAT THE LATTER PRODUCE MINOR AMOUNTS OF WATER OVER LARGE AREAS OR LARGE AMOUNTS OF WATER OVER SMALL AREAS.
UM, THE SIX MAJOR AQUIFERS, OR I'M SORRY, THE SIX MINOR AQUIFERS THAT WE LOOKED AT OR THE YAYWAH JACKSON SPARTA QUEEN CITY MARBLE FALLS, ELLENBERGER SAN SABA AND THE HICKORY NEXT SLIDE.
THE GOAL OF THIS INITIAL SCREEN ANALYSIS WAS TO EVALUATE A WIDE RANGE OF POSSIBLE OPTIONS AND NARROWLY FOCUSED TO A SHORT LIST OF THE MORE FAVORABLE AREAS FOR A DETAILED ANALYSIS.
WE LOOKED AT 91 COUNTY AQUIFER COMBINATIONS, AND THAT WE LOOKED AT BOTH THE HYDROGEOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE AS WELL AS THINGS THAT WOULD BE RELEVANT TO PROJECT SUCCESS, SUCH AS PERMITTING AND THE DISTANCE FROM THE COUNTY AQUIFER TO THE AUSTIN WATER SYSTEM.
AND WE DID THAT FOR EACH OF THE COUNTY AQUIFER COMBINATIONS.
WE THEN TOOK A CLOSER LOOK AT THE ABILITY TO MEET PROJECT TECHNICAL GOALS AT A HIGH LEVEL.
AND SO WE PERFORMED A FILTERING BASED ON THAT FEASIBILITY AND 17 COUNTY OLIVER COMBOS REMAINED UPON COMPARING THE SCORES THREE COUNTIES ROSE TO THE TOP FOR THE NEXT PHASE OF ANALYSIS, WITH THE DATA FOR ALL OTHERS THAT WERE RETAINING FOR ADDITIONAL ANALYSIS LATER DOWN THE ROAD.
SO THE THREE MAJOR CATEGORIES THAT WE LOOKED AT FOR THIS ANALYSIS INCLUDE THE HYDROGEOLOGY FORMIDABILITY AND THE PROXIMITY.
AND I'M JUST GOING TO WALK THROUGH REAL QUICKLY, UM, WHAT WAS COMPILED WITHIN EACH OF THOSE SCORES? SO THE HYDROGEOLOGY SCORE WAS BASED ON THE TEXAS WATER DEVELOPMENT BOARD ANALYSIS AND INCLUDED AQUIFER PROPERTIES CONSIDERED IMPORTANT FOR SUCCESSFUL ASR SYSTEM.
THIS PROVIDED A SWEEPING ANALYSIS OF THE SUITABILITY OF AQUIFERS FOR ASR PROJECTS OF ALL SIZES AND COSTS.
UM, FOR EXAMPLE, SOME OF THE CRITERIA THAT WE LOOKED AT OR DRIP VELOCITY STORE TIVITY, UM, A DESIRABLE QUALITY WOULD BE ONE THAT HAD A LOW DRIFT VELOCITY, MEANING THAT YOU'D KNOW WHERE THAT WATER IS WHEN YOU NEEDED IT.
UM, AND THEN ALSO HIGHER STORAGE ACTIVITY, MEANING THAT THE STORAGE SEWN WOULD BE FLEXIBLE ENOUGH TO STORE THE WATER THAT YOU NEED IN HIGHER SCORES FROM A HYDROGEOLOGY PERSPECTIVE WOULD INDICATE AN AREA OF MORE FAVORABLE ASR.
NEXT SLIDE, A PERMITTING SCORE WAS ASSIGNED BASED ON REGULATIONS IN THE AREA AND THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES COVERAGE THAT SHOWED WHERE THAT HABITAT MIGHT BE LOCATED.
IN THIS ANALYSIS, WE LOOKED AT TCEQ RULES.
WE ALSO LOOKED AT, UM, THE GROUNDWATER CONSERVATION DISTRICTS AND WHETHER OR NOT THEY HAD A PERMITTING AUTHORITY OVER ASR PROJECTS.
AND WE LOOKED AT THE POTENTIAL FOR THE THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES HABITAT AS WELL AS PROTECTED AREAS THAT WE WOULD WANT TO STAY AWAY FROM.
FINALLY, THE PROXIMITY SCORE TO THE NEAREST MAJOR AUSTIN WATER PUMP STATIONS WERE EVALUATED TO FACTOR IN THE SYSTEM INTEGRATION COMPONENT.
THE HIGHER SCORE INDICATES AN OPTION THAT'S CLOSER TO AUSTIN, WATER LONGER TRANSMISSION PIPELINE DISTANCES INCREASED THE LIKELIHOOD OF ENCOUNTERING ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE HABITAT AND PROTECTED LANDS OR NEIGHBORHOOD IMPACTS.
SO NOW THAT I'VE GONE THROUGH A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT WENT INTO THE SCORING, I WANTED TO SHARE SOME OF THE MAPS.
SO THIS IS A MAP THAT SHOWS ALL 91 COUNTY OXFORD COMBINATION IN ITS GLORY.
UM, AND THE HYDROGEOLOGY AND PERMITTING SCORE IS SHOWN.
UH, THE STATIC MAPS ARE A LITTLE BIT CHALLENGING BECAUSE WE'RE LOOKING AT 91 DIFFERENT COUNTY AQUIFERS.
UM, BUT THE SCORE RIGHT HERE IS SHOWING THE AQUIFERS THAT ARE ON THE TOP, RECOGNIZING THAT THERE'S SEVERAL DIFFERENT AQUIFER SYSTEMS AS WE GO A BIT DEEPER, THE DARKER ZONES INDICATE MORE FAVORABLE HYDROGEOLOGY SCORES AND THE HASH MARKS ARE INDICATING THE PERMIT PERMITTING SCORES.
[00:40:01]
LIKE WE LOST CHRISTIE FOR A MOMENT AND YOU'RE BACK.SO THEN WE APPLIED THE FEASIBILITY FILTER.
WE DEVELOPED SCORES FOR ALL THE INPUTS THAT WE NEEDED TO FILTER OUT.
WE FILTER BASED ON THE NUMBER OF WELLS AND THE SPACE AVAILABLE.
SO FOR THE NUMBER OF WELLS, WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE FOUND WELL FIELD AREAS THAT WERE ABLE TO SUPPORT THE HIGH LEVEL ASR PROJECT GOALS OF THE WATER FORWARD PLANT 60,000 ACRE FEET OF STORAGE BY 2040 WITH EXPANSIONS PLANNED IN THE FUTURE DECADES, WE LOOKED AT THE NUMBER OF WELLS NEEDED TO ACHIEVE THAT PROJECT YIELD AND FILTERED BASED ON WHAT WAS STANDARD, UM, THROUGH AWW SURVEYS FOR ASR PROJECTS ACROSS THE NATION.
AND IT APPEARED IN LINE WITH EXISTING PROJECTS.
SECOND PART OF THE FEASIBILITY FILTER WAS TO HAVE SUITABLE SPACE AVAILABLE.
WE NEED ENOUGH SPACE TO SPACE OUT THE WELLS FOR STORAGE AND LEAVE ROOM FOR LAND NEGOTIATIONS AND PROTECTING STORED WATER.
SO ONCE WE APPLIED THAT FEASIBILITY FILTER, NEXT SLIDE, WE WERE ABLE TO GET TO 17 MORE FEASIBLE COUNTY AQUIFER COMBINATIONS.
AND THIS TABLE JUST SHOWS THOSE DIFFERENT 17, UM, COUNTY AQUIFER COMBINATIONS THAT ROSE UP TO THE TOP THROUGH THE FEASIBILITY ASSESSMENTS.
UM, IT'S SORTED BY HYDRO SCORE WITH APPROXIMATE WELL YIELD PROXIMITY AND THE PERMITTING SCORES FOR REFERENCE.
AND THERE'S QUITE A MIX HERE OF HIGH HYDRO SCORES, BUT LOW PROXIMITY SCORES AND VICE VERSA.
SO WORKING WITH BOSTON STAFF, WE, UM, ASSIMILATED THIS INFORMATION FROM THE INITIAL SCREENING PROCESS AND THE FEASIBILITY FAIL FILTER.
AND WE SELECTED THREE AREAS TO INVESTIGATE IN MORE DETAIL DURING THE NEXT LEVEL OF SPATIAL ANALYSIS AND THOSE THREE COUNTIES, OUR BASTROP, LEE AND TRAVIS.
UM, WE'RE SPECIFICALLY FOCUSING ON NEXT SLIDE, THE NORTHERN PART OF TRAVIS COUNTY, AS WELL AS, UM, BOTH BASTROP AND LEE COUNTY RIGHT NOW.
UM, AND WE'RE GOING TO BE, UH, EMPLOYING A TOOL THAT LOOKS AT SITE-SPECIFIC INFORMATION AS WELL AS A WHOLE LIST OF ADDITIONAL SCREENING PARAMETERS, TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY THE BEST LOCATIONS FOR WELL FIELD DEVELOPMENT.
AND THE KEY TAKE HOME IS THAT THAT'S THAT THOSE ARE THE NEXT, UM, THAT THOSE ARE THE AREAS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE STUDYING DURING THE NEXT PHASE.
AND THEN WE'LL BE ABLE TO TAKE A LOOK AT HOW THOSE COMPARED TO INTEGRATION POINTS WITHIN AUSTIN SYSTEM AND COST OUT THE PROJECT AND VALUATIONS AND DIFFERENT ALTERNATIVES.
AND NOW I'LL PASS IT BACK TO HELEN TO DISCUSS NEXT STEPS.
YOU GUYS, HERE WE GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, HELEN.
THEY GO TO THAT NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.
SO CHRISTIE TOUCHED ON THIS AT THE END OF HER SLIDES, BUT THE NEXT STEP WILL BE PERFORMING DETAILED SPATIAL MAPPING OF THOSE AREAS THAT WE IDENTIFIED THROUGH THE SCREENING PROCESS.
SO LOOKING AT A VARIETY OF CRITERIA AND WEIGHTINGS TO HELP US, UM, IDENTIFY SPOTS WITHIN THOSE THREE COUNTIES THAT ARE MOST FAVORABLE FOR ASR WEALTH FIELD AREAS.
AND THEN ONCE WE'VE COMPLETED THAT WE'LL BE COMBINING THOSE, UM, FAVORABLE WELL FIELD AREAS WITH, UH, AUSTIN WATER SITE INTEGRATION POINTS TO CREATE PROJECT ALTERNATIVES.
SO EACH PROJECT ALTERNATIVE WILL BE A WELL FIELD AND AN ASSOCIATED, UH, INTEGRATION POINT IN OUR AUSTIN WATER SYSTEM.
THIS WILL IS THE TRANSMISSION CONNECTING THOSE TWO.
AND THOSE PROJECT ALTERNATIVES WILL BE WHAT WE PERFORM OUR TRADE-OFF ANALYSES ON MATURE, UM, WILL BE LET'S SEE, WELL, THAT'S WHAT WE'LL DO OUR TRADE OFF ANALYSIS ON.
AND OUR TRADE OFF ANALYSIS WILL BE INFORMED BY OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT THAT WE, UH, PERFORM IN SPRING 2022 AND THROUGHOUT THE SUMMER, UH, THE COMMUNITY WILL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE INPUT ON THOSE DIFFERENT CRITERIA AND WEIGHTING, SO THAT WE'LL BE USING TO PERFORM THE TRADE-OFF ANALYSIS.
AND WITH THAT, WE CAN ADVANCE TO THE NEXT SLIDE, WHICH I BELIEVE IS, UM,
[00:45:01]
JUST ASKING IF THERE, WELL, THE OVERALL PROJECT TIMELINE, JUST TO CUT A REITERATE.UM, SO THE PHASE ONE A IS THE FIRST LITTLE BOX THERE ON THE LEFT.
UM, WE'RE ANTICIPATING COMPLETING PHASE WET EIGHT BY 2023.
THE ULTIMATE RESULT BE THAT WE'LL HAVE IDENTIFIED.
AND THEN THE NEXT STEPS WILL BE, UM, DESIGNING, CONSTRUCTING, AND TESTING AND ASR PILOT BIG INTO, UM, FULL-SCALE ASR, PERFORMING PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING, DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION, BUT THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF HAVING THE FULL-SCALE ASR BEGINNING TO STORE WATER BY 2035, SO THAT WE'RE ABLE TO MEET OUR 20, 40 WATERFORD TARGETS.
CAN YOU GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE? AND NOW I'LL STOP AND ASK IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS THEN YOU CAN SEE THERE.
UM, WE'VE GOT, UH, OUR AUSTIN WATER PAGES.
ONE OF THOSE, A SPEAK-UP AUSTIN PAGE.
THAT'S GOT INFORMATION ABOUT ASR.
I HAVE A QUESTION BILL, GO AHEAD.
HOW MUCH ACREAGE DO YOU EXPECT TO NEED FOR THIS FACILITY? IT'LL DEPEND ON WHICH AQUIFER WE'RE OVER.
UH, ONE EXAMPLE IS, UH, SAN ANTONIO I THINK HAS ABOUT 3,200 ACRES FOR THEIR ASR FACILITY.
AND THERE IS THIS I BELIEVE IN THE KARESA.
SO WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL ALWAYS BE SIMILAR TO THAT? IF THE HYDROGEOLOGY OF THE AQUIFER IT'LL DEPEND ON HOW MUCH WE'RE ABLE TO STORE IN THE AQUIFER? SO I THINK WE'LL REALLY JUST NEED TO IDENTIFY THOSE WELL FIELD AREAS BEFORE WE'RE ABLE TO PUT A NUMBER TO IT.
BUT THE THIRD WEEK ANCHORS WOULD BE ABOUT FIVE SQUARE MILES.
WOULD I BE RIGHT ON THAT, HELEN? I'M NOT SURE IF THE ACRES TWO MILES CONVERSION WHO CAN CONVERT 3,200 ACRES INTO SQUARE MILES DIVIDED BY 40 43, 5 60.
IT'S 640 ACRES PER SQUARE MILE.
UM, SO ONE THING I'VE SAID IN THE PAST THAT I THINK WHENEVER WE LOOK AT THIS FACILITY THAT WE OUGHT TO LOOK TO MAKING IT AS BIG AS WE CAN POSSIBLY MAKE IT OR MAKE IT EXPANDABLE SO THAT IT COULD GROW.
IF IT IS SUCCESSFUL, I WOULD THINK YOU'D WANT TO DO MORE OF THIS AND NOT GET HEMMED IN BY DEVELOPMENT OR SOME OTHER, UM, MUNICIPAL BOUNDARY OR WHATEVER.
I THINK THAT WOULD BE A CONSIDERATION IN, UH, THE PICKING OF THE LOCATION OF THIS THING IS I THINK THE TERM I WOULD USE IS EXPANDABLE.
AND I THINK I BROUGHT THIS UP IN ONE OF OUR MEETINGS WITH ALL THE EXPERTS A FEW MONTHS AGO, AND A COUPLE OF THOSE EXPERTS WERE AGREEING WITH ME.
SO I'D JUST LIKE TO RESTATE THAT THINKING.
LET'S BE THINKING EXPANDABLE, BUT THAT CONCLUDES MY QUESTION.
CAN I SAY SOMETHING? THIS IS PERRY.
UM, WHY DO WE NEED SUCH A BIG FOOTPRINT? WE'RE GOING TO PUNCH A HOLE IN THE GROUND AND I KNOW WE NEED THE FACILITY, BUT THE AQUIFER GOES ON AND ON AND ON AND EVERY DIRECTION, I DON'T KNOW.
DO WE HAVE TO MATCH THE SIZE OF THE AQUIFER WITH OUR FOOTPRINT? I MEAN, IS THAT THE CALCULATION WE'RE MAKING? I THINK ONCE WE HAVE A HOLE IN THE GROUND AND WE'RE IN THE AQUIFER, WHO KNOWS WHERE THE LIMIT IS.
UH, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION.
UM, I COULD MAYBE TAKE A STAB AT THAT.
SO THE WAY THAT, UM, EXISTING GROUNDWATER REGULATIONS ARE IN TEXAS, IF WE DON'T HAVE CONTROL OF THE LAND ABOVE THE AQUIFER, ANYBODY COULD ACCESS THAT WATER.
SO IT'S MORE AN ASPECT OF PROTECTING THE WATER THAT'S BEEN STORED RATHER THAN NEEDING LIKE SOME REQUIREMENT TO HAVE A MATCH OF ACREAGE OF, OF, UM, TO THE WATER BELOW.
AND THE SAN ANTONIO ASR PROJECT, UM, SOME OF THAT HAS TO DO WITH
[00:50:01]
GROUNDWATER LAW AND THE RIGHT OF CAPTURE AND OTHER THINGS.UM, BUT, BUT YEAH, I MEAN, IT COULD BE DONE DIFFERENT WAYS THAT SOMETHING DEFINITELY WORTH CONSIDERING I THINK PROTECTING THE WATER SUPPLY THAT YOU'RE INVESTING AT AN INJECTING UNDERGROUND.
OH, HERE'S ANOTHER, UH, TASK FORCE MEMBER THAT IS APPEARING BOBBY LAVINSKY I'M THERE.
I WAS HAVING A REALLY BAD TECH DAY.
I'LL JUST SAY LEAVE IT AT THAT.
I'M GLAD THAT YOU'RE HERE, BOBBY.
UM, YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT HELPS AT ALL.
UM, AND I'VE BEEN THERE MYSELF ALSO.
ANYONE CAN, YOU KNOW, THERE'S, YOU CAN, UH, SHOW UP IN PERSON TOO, AND THEN ALL THE TECHS TAKEN CARE OF FOR YOU.
DO WE HAVE ANY MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS? I MEAN, THIS IS DEFINITELY THOUGHT PROVOKING.
THIS IS A BIG DOSE OF INFORMATION.
SO TODD, AND THEN HANEY, THANK YOU.
UM, THIS, THIS OBVIOUSLY IS A MASSIVE UNDERTAKING, UM, CRITICALLY IMPORTANT TO THE OVERALL PLAN.
I THINK ONE OF THE MOST UNPROVEN, YET MOST IMPORTANT PIECES OF THE PLAN.
SO, UM, I'M SUPER EXCITED WITH THE PROGRESS THAT'S BEING MADE.
I CONTINUE TO REITERATE THAT THE TIMING HERE WHILE, UH, BUT WELL, MAYBE IT SEEMS AGGRESSIVE.
IT IS CONCERNING TO ME THAT WE'RE, YOU KNOW, 13 PLUS YEARS AWAY FROM BEING ABLE TO BEGIN AGAIN TO STORE WATER.
UM, IS THERE ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO TO BRING FORWARD THAT TIMING AND POTENTIALLY CATCH TIMES OF EXCESS SOONER THAN 2035 RECENTLY WE COULD KEEP IN MIND AS WE'RE WORKING THROUGH.
I THINK YOU NEED TO GET CLOSER TO YOUR MIC IF YOU GUYS HEAR ME.
THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN, WE CAN CERTAINLY LOOK AT WAYS TO SPEED UP THE TIMELINE AS WE'RE WORKING THROUGH.
UM, I THINK IDENTIFY WHERE WE WANT TO PUT THE PROJECT WILL BE KIND OF THE FIRST STEP TO, UM, FLUSHING OUT THAT TIMELINE IN MORE DETAIL.
UM, AND I'LL SEE, I GUESS IF CHRISTIE OR REESER KEVIN WANT TO ADD ANYTHING TO THAT? I MEAN, JUST FROM MY 2 CENTS, I MEAN, I THINK, UM, YOU HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD.
I MEAN, WELL, REALLY WHAT'S IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW IS THAT WE WORKED THROUGH THIS PROCESS PARTICULARLY TO VALIDATE THE APPROPRIATE PLACES, TO DO OUR TESTING AND THEN MOVE INTO THAT PILOT PHASE.
UM, I THINK A LOT OF OUR SCHEDULE IS RELATED TO CONSTRUCTION.
THAT'S FAIRLY, UM, TRADITIONAL, SO THERE MAY BE OPPORTUNITIES AFTER WE DECIDE WHERE WE NEED TO BE AND THEN GO THROUGH THE DETAILS OF, OF ACQUIRING LAND THAN, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE MAY BE OPPORTUNITIES TO EXPEDITE CERTAIN CONSTRUCTION ELEMENTS THAT CAN BRING IT ON FASTER, BUT I THINK AS WE'RE APPROACHING IT RIGHT NOW, UM, YOU KNOW, WE WANT TO BE MINDFUL OF CERTAIN CONDITIONS, UH, HYDROLOGICALLY AND, UM, CERTAINLY WE'LL CONTINUE TO TRY TO MAKE, UH, UH, IMPLEMENTATION AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE ONCE.
WE'RE SURE THIS IS, UH, A SOUND STRATEGY.
HAITI, DID YOU HAVE A QUESTION? OKAY.
SO MY QUESTION IS YOLA IDENTIFIED THE THREE LOCATIONS NORTH TRAVIS MASTRO AND D COUNTY.
UM, IS THERE, I MEAN, ARE THEY ALL EQUAL OR IS THERE, I MEAN, AT THIS POINT ARE ONES MORE, UM, UM, LUCRATIVE OR, UH, A SEEM MORE PROMISING THAN OTHERS? UM, EV AM I LOUD ENOUGH? YEAH, WE HAVE, UM, THE DATA THAT WAS PRESENTED THAT KRISTI SHARED AND THE SLIDES SHOW THE DIFFERENT SCORES FOR THE VARIOUS AQUIFERS IN THE COUNTIES.
SO THEY WERE ALL THE HIGHEST SCORING IN TERMS OF THEIR HYDROGEOLOGIC FAVORABILITY, BUT WITH VARYING, UM, PERMITTING AND A NUMBER OF WELLS
[00:55:01]
AND DISTANCE NEEDED.SO, UH, I THINK THOSE ALL SPEAK TO KIND OF THE RELATIVE FAVORIBILITY, BUT, UM, GETTING THE DETAILED MAPPING, I THINK WILL REALLY BE WHAT WE NEED TO KIND OF SEE WHICH ONES RISE TO THE TOP, BECAUSE THIS WAS JUST A HIGH LEVEL LOOK, UM, ON A WHOLE, YOU KNOW, COUNTYWIDE BASIS.
SO YEAH, I IMAGINE THAT YOU PROBABLY WILL HAVE MORE DIFFICULTY IN TERMS OF PERMITTING IN THE NORTH TRAVIS AREA.
IT'S GOT A LOWER PERMANENT BILITY SCORE THAN THE OTHER COUNTIES.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS? OKAY, VANESSA, SARAH, AND THEN I'LL GO.
I WAS CURIOUS, UM, IN TERMS OF THE LAND REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE NEEDED, WOULD THAT BE ACCOMPLISHED THROUGH LIKE OUTRIGHT ACQUISITION OF LAND OR WOULD YOU ALSO BE LOOKING AT, UH, LIKE LEASES, BUT WITH REQUIREMENTS THAT THE LAND OWNER, YOU KNOW, CAN'T DO CERTAIN THINGS.
SO, YOU KNOW, MAYBE EVEN CONSERVATION EASEMENT LAND ALSO HAVE, Y'ALL BEEN THINKING ABOUT THAT YET.
WE HAVE BEEN THINKING ABOUT THAT AND WE'RE CERTAINLY NOT TIED TO ANY APPROACH AT THIS POINT, BUT I GUESS I'LL, I'LL MAYBE YELLED AT KEVIN AND SEE IF HE HAS ANY, UM, ADDITIONAL, NO, I MEAN, IT, IT'LL STILL BE PART OF THE CONSIDERATION.
UM, OBVIOUSLY NOT A STRAIGHTFORWARD FEE, SIMPLE ACQUISITION THAT HAS CERTAIN COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH IT, BUT, UM, THERE ARE CERTAINLY OTHER, UH, MECHANISMS TO SECURE THE SURFACE PROPERTY RIGHTS, UH, NECESSARY.
SO, UM, YEAH, WE'LL LOOK AT ALL OF THOSE AND KIND OF HAVE TO WEIGH OUT, YOU KNOW, SORT OF COMMERCIAL AVAILABILITY OF, YOU KNOW, THOSE DIFFERENT, UM, ARRANGEMENTS.
I DO BELIEVE THAT SAN ANTONIO USES A VARIETY OF STRATEGIES.
AND SO MY GUESS IS WE'LL FOLLOW A SIMILAR PATHWAY, UM, AS SAWS HAS DONE WITH THEIR, UM, THEIR PROJECT.
I WANTED TO, UM, GO BACK TO THE INFORMATIONAL VIDEO, WHICH WAS REALLY WELL DONE, AND I THOUGHT EXPLAINED THE PROCESS.
I DID WANT TO CAUTION AND JUST, JUST, YOU KNOW, A NOTE OF WARNING IN ALL THE PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS.
I THINK WE NEED TO BE REALLY CAREFUL AND REALLY PRECISE ABOUT THE TYPE OF, UM, THE TYPE OF SECURITY THAT THIS PROVIDES, WHICH I SEE AS WATER SUPPLY.
AND, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'VE BEEN THROUGH IN THE PAST FIVE YEARS, SEVERAL DIFFERENT WATER EMERGENCIES THAT, UM, ARE NOT ACTUALLY RELATED TO WATER SUPPLY.
AND I JUST WANT TO BE REALLY CAREFUL WITH WHAT WE TELL THE PUBLIC ABOUT HOW THE WATER SYSTEM WORKS.
WE ALSO HAVE, YOU KNOW, ENGAGED IN, UM, BUILDING THE WATER TREATMENT PLANT WHERE IT WAS, YOU KNOW, THIS IS A NEW SOURCE, WE'RE RELYING ON TWO SOURCES AND THIS IS GONNA PROVIDE ALL THIS SECURITY AND REDUNDANCY IN CASE OF EMERGENCIES.
AND SO WE, UM, WE NEED TO BE REALLY, REALLY SPECIFIC ABOUT WHAT THE BENEFITS OF THIS PROJECT ARE, AND THEY'RE VERY IMPORTANT, BUT I DON'T WANT TO GET IN A POSITION OF, UM, OVERSELLING THE COMPLEXITY OF A WATER SYSTEM AND THINGS THAT CAN HAPPEN.
SO, UM, PLEASE BE REALLY CAREFUL ABOUT THAT.
I WAS ALSO CURIOUS, COMING ALONG WITH VANESSA'S QUESTION ABOUT, UM, THE LAND ACQUISITION, AND OBVIOUSLY YOU HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO THERE, BUT IF YOU CAN LIKE CONTINUE TO KEEP ANY INFORMATION IN THAT AS PART OF OUR UPDATES, I'M ALSO, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO THINK ABOUT, UM, ENGAGING WITH, UM, BASTROP COUNTY OR WHICHEVER COUNTY WHERE THIS IS AND THINKING ABOUT LIKE, WHAT ARE THEIR NEEDS LOCALLY FOR, UM, LAND CONSERVATION MITIGATION FROM DEVELOPMENT? I MEAN, I'M ASSUMING THAT A LOT OF THIS CAN BE AN DEVELOPED OPEN SPACE OR IT COULD BE DEVELOPED FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES, BUT IT FEELS LIKE THERE SHOULD BE SOME DUAL PURPOSES THAT ACQUIRING THIS MUCH LAND COULD SERVE.
SO, UM, I'M NOT SURE WHAT ALL THE PROPER AVENUES AND VEHICLES ARE THERE.
AND I ALSO, YOU KNOW, WANT TO BE REALLY SENSITIVE TO ACQUIRING FIVE SQUARE MILES IN AN ADJACENT COUNTY IN ANOTHER COUNTY TO, YOU KNOW, BE BECOMING A MAJOR LANDOWNER AND HOW TO BE SENSITIVE TO THE NEEDS OF THOSE COMMUNITIES.
[01:00:01]
AND, UH, THAT WAS THE PERFECT SEGUE BECAUSE I HAD SOME COMMENTS ALONG THE SAME LINES.ONE IS, UM, I REALLY APPRECIATE THE COMMENTS ABOUT X, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, HOW CAN WE ACCELERATE THIS, THIS IS AN IMPORTANT WATER SUPPLY.
UH, BUT, UM, AT THE SAME TIME, I FEEL LIKE THAT WE ARE NOW IN THE PHASE OF, YOU KNOW, TALKING PUBLICLY ABOUT THIS, HAVING LOCATIONS ON A MAP, HAVING SCORING FOR AREAS THAT ARE OUTSIDE OF AUSTIN, UM, THAT THINGS CAN GET A LITTLE TOUCHY.
I DON'T KNOW THAT IT WILL HERE.
I'M NOT PROJECTING THE WILL BE, BUT, UM, I'VE SEEN IT HAPPEN.
YOU KNOW, WE, WE'VE HEARD ABOUT SAAS EXPERIENCE IN THE PAST WITH THEIR, UM, WITH THEIR WATER STRUGGLES AND, UM, LOOKING OUTSIDE OF THEIR COMMUNITY FOR WATER.
SO I JUST, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, UM, COMMUNITY OUTREACH, THE CONVERSATIONS, HOW WE, HOW WE, UM, ROLL ALL THIS OUT AND, AND, UM, AND CREATE OPPORTUNITIES FOR AND RECEIVE INPUT ARE JUST VERY, VERY IMPORTANT HERE, UM, TO WHERE IT CAN BECOME A REALLY GOOD THING THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT VERSUS SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, THAT PEOPLE ARE FREAKING OUT ABOUT.
UM, AND THAT DOESN'T GO, NOT ONLY WITH THIS CITIZENS OF AUSTIN, BUT IT GOES WITH THE, UM, WITH THE COUNTIES LIKE SARAH WAS SAYING WITH, YOU KNOW, IF WE ARE LOOKING AT ANOTHER COUNTY, IF THERE'S A GROUNDWATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT THERE, UM, ALL THESE THINGS, THERE'S A LOT OF POLITICAL JURISDICTIONS AND A LOT OF FEELINGS ABOUT WATER AND OUR WATER SUPPLY.
UM, THE OTHER THING I WANTED TO MENTION IS, AS I REMEMBER BACK WHEN WE WERE DEVELOPING THE WATERFORD PLAN, WE HAD SEVERAL PEOPLE FROM BASTROP COUNTY COME TO OUR GROUP AND SAY, DO NOT, UM, TAKE WATER FROM BASTROP COUNTY, DON'T USE WATER AS A RESOURCE.
AND WE REALLY MADE A VERY INTENTIONAL DECISION THAT WE WERE NOT GOING TO DO THAT.
UM, SO I THINK THAT WE NEED TO BE REALLY CAREFUL IN HOW WE APPROACH THAT TOO, THAT WE ARE INSTALLING WELLS.
IF, IF WE DO, IF WE DO, YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT WE ARE VERY CLEAR IN OUR ATTENTION THAT THIS IS NOT, THAT THIS IS GOING TO BE, YOU KNOW, A BANK ACCOUNT THAT WE ARE DEPOSITING AND WITHDRAWING FROM WATER FROM THE COLORADO RIVER AND NOT INTENDING TO, UM, TO ACCESS GROUNDWATER.
UM, SO I JUST THINK, YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT, THAT COULD COME UP BECAUSE I WAS DEFINITELY A HOT BUTTON ISSUE DARING, UM, LEADING UP TO, AND DURING THE DEVELOPMENT OF WATERFORD, THAT WAS A LOT.
I THINK BOTH YOUR AND SARAH'S COMMENTS WERE, UM, VERY WELL TAKEN, VERY ASTUTE COMMENTS.
AND THOSE ARE THINGS THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT AND WORKING THROUGH AS, AS PART OF OUR, UH, DEVELOPMENT OF OUR ENGAGEMENT AND OUTREACH STRATEGY, UM, YOU KNOW, FOR THE BROADER COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, BUT THEN ALSO OUR ENGAGEMENT WITH, FOR EXAMPLE, ELECTED OFFICIALS, UM, IN OTHER COUNTIES, UM, YOU KNOW, AT THE, AT THE COUNTY LEVEL, AT THE LOCAL LEVEL, ET CETERA.
UM, SO THAT'S HEARD OF OUR PLANNING PROCESS IS THINKING ABOUT WHAT ARE THE KIND OF BEST AVENUES FOR BEGINNING THAT CONVERSATION, DEVELOPING THOSE RELATIONSHIPS SO THAT WE CAN SHARE THE MESSAGE OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO WITH THIS ASR PROJECT, HOW IT REALLY IS A STRATEGY TO MAKE USE OF THE RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE TO US ALREADY, RATHER THAN AN EXTRACTIVE PROJECT AND HOW WE'RE HOPING TO BUILD STRONG FOUNDATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE COMMUNITIES, WHATEVER COMMUNITY MAY BE IMPACTED BY THIS PROJECT, UM, TO TRY TO SEE US THROUGH THE ENTIRE, UM, PROJECT DURATION.
SO BOTH OF YOUR COMMENTS WERE VERY WELL TAKEN.
AND I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS THE FIRST TIME THAT THIS HAS BEEN ROLLED OUT WITH, YOU KNOW, ACTUAL, LIKE I SAID, MAPS AND SCORES AND STUFF.
UM, AND, AND IF IT IS THE FIRST TIME PUBLICLY, I, IT'S PROBABLY NOT, IT MAY BE TIME TO GO AHEAD AND JUST REACH OUT TO FOLKS AND, YOU KNOW, SOME PEOPLE AREN'T DRAWING CONCLUSIONS.
I KNOW THAT YOU PROBABLY DON'T HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS YET, BUT THOSE CONVERSATIONS STARTING SOONER RATHER THAN LATER IS PROBABLY GOOD.
AND THIS IS THE FIRST, UM, YOU ARE AS OUR TASK FORCE, YOU'RE GETTING THE FIRST VIEWING THAT THESE MAPS IN A PUBLIC FORUM, AND WE HAVE BEGAN TO REACH OUT TO VARIOUS ELECTED OFFICIALS AND OTHER COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO BEGIN DISCUSSIONS.
SO, UM, ANY MORE ON THIS ITEM, UM, WE DO HAVE AN ASR TECHNICAL COMMITTEE THAT MIGHT NOT BE THE RIGHT NAME THAT I BELIEVE, UM, BILL MORIARTY AND HANEY BOTH SERVE ON, IS THAT CORRECT? ALONG WITH OTHER EXPERTS? UM, AND SO THERE, UH, I'M NOT ON THE COMMITTEE.
UM, I HAVEN'T MEMORIZED ALL THE COMMITTEES YET AND WE'RE GOING TO CHANGE SOME STUFF UP, SO, UM, OKAY.
SO THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SERVICE ON THAT.
DEFINITELY AN IMPORTANT PROJECT.
[01:05:01]
Y'ALL AND THANK YOU.UM, CHRISTIE, I MENTIONED SOMETHING, JENNIFER, I JUST THOUGHT OF ABSOLUTELY.
SO YOU REMEMBER WHEN WE WENT DOWN TO SAN ANTONIO TO VISIT THE ASR? YEAH.
THAT WAS AN OUTSTANDING, UM, TOUR AND REALLY GREAT EDUCATION, UH, EXPERIENCE FOR THAT.
DO YOU REMEMBER WHEN WE WENT DOWN THERE? IT WAS BEFORE THE LIKE 2016, MAYBE IT WAS MARCH 4TH, 2018.
AND, UH, I ONLY MENTIONED THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE S HAVE NEW PEOPLE ON OUR COMMITTEE, AND I'M NOT SAYING WE NEED TO DO THIS ANY IMMEDIATE PACE, BUT IT MIGHT BE WORTHWHILE THAT AS WE GO FORWARD, THAT WE ARRANGE ANOTHER TRIP DOWN THERE FOR THE NEW PEOPLE OR PEOPLE THAT WANT TO GO AGAIN TO SEE, UH, WHAT THEY HAVE DOWN THERE.
BECAUSE I THINK AS YOU SAID, IT'S VERY EDUCATIONAL.
AND, UH, I DON'T THINK IT WOULD BE A COMPLETELY WRONG IDEA TO INVITE MAYBE CERTAIN MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL THAT MIGHT LIKE TO BE, BECOME BEING BROUGHT UP TO SPEED ON ALL OF THIS.
BUT AGAIN, I THINK WE'VE GOT TIME.
IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE ANY IMMEDIATE THING, BUT I THINK THAT OUGHT TO BE PUT ON A LIST SOMEWHERE.
I MEAN, AND THE REASON THAT THAT WAS SO INFORMATIVE AND SUCH A REALLY GOOD LEARNING EXPERIENCE WAS BECAUSE SAWS REALLY, REALLY WANTS TO SHARE THE INFORMATION AND STUFF, AND THEY PARTICIPATE IN THE TASK FORCE, THE ASR PROJECT FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
AND I COULD SAY THE EXECUTIVES OF SIZE, I WAS SO IMPRESSED WITH HOW GRACIOUS THEY WERE AND SPENDING THE ENTIRE DAY WITH US, JUST ALL ABOUT THIS.
SO THEY WERE, THEY WERE JUST GREAT.
SO SHALL WE MOVE ON TO THE WATER FOR 2024 UPDATE? OR DO WE HAVE ANY MORE ON THIS AGENDA ITEM? MERISSA YOU'D LIKE, YOU MIGHT WANT TO SAY SOMETHING.
I THINK WE DO NEED TO PAUSE FOR JUST A MOMENT, UM, SO THAT WE CAN, UH, WAIT FOR OUR TASK FORCE MEMBER TO COME BACK TO THE ROOM.
UM, I GET TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY THEN BEFORE NEXT ITEM, MAYBE WE CAN PAUSE AND WE CAN REGROUP IN JUST A MOMENT WHEN, UM, UH, SARAH COMES BACK.
UH, WE'RE GOING TO GET STARTED IN ONE MINUTE HERE BECAUSE, UH, OUR TASK FORCE MEMBERS RETURNING, BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT ON CAMERA.
I THOUGHT BECAUSE I THOUGHT THEY WERE GOING TO BE ABLE TO GET PERRY BACK ON.
WE JUST NEED TO GET VANESSA BACK ON.
AND HANEY BACK, AND THEN WE'LL BE GOOD TO GO.
HANEY'S BACKDROP A REAL PLACE.
I MEAN, YES, IT IS A REAL PLACE, BUT NOT, HE'S NOT REALLY THERE.
SO WE'RE BACK QUORUM, WATERFORD 24, 20 24 UPDATE.
[2.c. Water Forward 2024 update i. Task progress to date: community engagement, demand forecasting, and climate and hydrology analysis ii. Draft revised mission statement and guiding principles]
YE