By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
A local water expert told city council Tuesday the city is facing “a critical water situation” brought on by the ongoing south Texas drought.
Jerry Simpton, a voting member of the state’s Plateau Water Planning Group, who has advised a series of city, county and state elected leaders on water planning for the region, spoke to the council during its special meeting.
Mayor Al Arreola invited Simpton to speak to the council following a presentation by city staff about how the current drought is affecting the San Felipe Springs and the city’s efforts to secure an alternate water source. (See separate stories.)
“The presentation that was made gives a very good overview of the problem we have, but he didn’t really tell you how critical it is. Right now, the East Springs is essentially shutting down,” Simpton told the council.
“You’ve already got a critical situation on the East Springs,” he added.
“The West Springs sits lower in elevation than the East Springs. The East Springs is up on a small hill, and the West Springs is down in the creek bottom, so I don’t know what the differential is, 15-20 feet probably, so the West Springs is still doing fair, but not very good,” Simpton said.
“Our average production (from the San Felipe Springs) is about 60 million gallons a day, and right now, we’re doing 15, 16, 17 (million gallons a day) right now and dropping,” he added.
Simpton said over the last two summers, another large spring in the region, Las Moras Springs in Brackettville, 30 miles east of Del Rio, has dried up. He noted Brackettville has a deep well from which it draws its city water and he does not believe it will run dry.
“We’re getting close to that on the East Springs,” Simpton warned.
“What should you do today? You need to drill the test well. Drill it where (city staff) is recommending, on the archery range. You have 100 acres or so there, land that was bought for the expansion of the golf course.
“One production well will produce maybe about three million gallons a day, so one well won’t take care of your needs. You’re going to need two or three, but one is a start, and you need the test well to tell you where to put it, so your option today is, tell the city manager to hire a well driller, and they can drill the test well for fairly low cost,” Simpton urged.
Simpton estimated each production well will cost the city at least a million dollars.
“So you better start looking for some money. That’s what we’re up against. If we get rain, or we get a flood, and the aquifer fills up, then we don’t have an issue, but right now, the unknown of it is if the that aquifer drops another 20 feet or so, you’ll have (real problems at the West Springs), and you have no backup after that. You’re out of business,” Simpton said.
“We’ve been fortunate. I’ve been here 50 years, and the springs have produced. They’ve produced at different levels. Right now, we’re probably very similar to the end of the (major Texas) drought of the 1950s. In 1956, I understand the East Springs quit flowing out, and at the time I do not think they had the West Springs pumps.
“We’re seeing a similar situation today as in ’56. But then in 1957, it started raining, so we went 70 years without that recurring. But we’re back in a critical situation today.
“That’s my recommendation to you, and I think (city staff) understands what we are facing,” Simpton said.
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com
