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6 Document(s) [ Subject: Environmental flows ]

Committee:	House Natural Resources
Title:	Interim Report
Subjects:	Coastal restoration | Environmental flows | Groundwater | Gulf Coast | Oil spills | Texas State Water Plan | Water conservation | Water desalination | Water marketing | Water planning |
Library Call Number:	L1836.84 N218h
Session:	84th R.S. (2015)
Online version:	View report [51 pages]
Charges:	This report should address the charges below.
1.	Examine the regional and state water planning processes, with emphasis on the following: a. the integration of HB 4, 83 RS; b. the appropriate role of the state in ensuring that the process both supports regional goals and priorities and the water needs of the state as a whole, and how the state might encourage strategies to benefit multiple regions; c. the structure and operation of the regional planning groups; d. the interaction between the planning process and groundwater management; e. whether the "drought of record" remains the appropriate benchmark for planning; and f. any impediments to meeting the conservation, agricultural, and rural project goals set by HB 4, 83rd R.S., and possible new approaches to help meet these goals.
2.	Evaluate the status of water markets in Texas and the potential benefits and challenges of expanded markets for water. Include an evaluation of greater interconnections between water systems through both engineered and natural infrastructure. Examine opportunities for incentives from areas receiving water supplies to areas providing those supplies that could benefit each area and the state as a whole.
3.	Analyze the factors contributing to freshwater loss in the state, including evaporation, excess flows into the Gulf of Mexico, and infrastructure inefficiencies, and examine techniques to prevent such losses, including aquifer storage and recovery, off-channel storage, and infrastructure enhancements.
4.	Evaluate the progress of seawater desalination projects near the Texas coast as a means of increasing water supplies and reducing strain on existing supplies, building on the work of the Joint Interim Committee to Study Water Desalination (83rd session). Examine the viability of the use of public-private partnerships and of methods by which the state might facilitate such a project.
5.	Monitor the use of funds made available to Texas in relation to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Consider approaches to maximize the benefit of these funds for the long-term stability of the coastal economy and ecosystems.
6.	Evaluate the status of legislation to encourage joint groundwater planning, including HB 200 (84R), and monitor ongoing legal developments concerning ownership and access to groundwater and the impact of these developments on property rights and groundwater management.
7.	Determine the sources of water used by Texans in the production of food and fiber, and examine current water delivery methods and water conservation goals for agricultural use. Evaluate whether there are more efficient and effective water-usage management practices that could be employed in the agricultural industry, and determine the impact of crop insurance requirements on producers. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Agriculture & Livestock)
8.	Determine if sufficient safety standards exist to protect groundwater contamination from disposal and injection wells. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Energy Resources)
9.	Conduct legislative oversight and monitoring of the agencies and programs under the committee’s jurisdiction and the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 84th Legislature. In conducting this oversight, the committee should: a. consider any reforms to state agencies to make them more responsive to Texas taxpayers and citizens; b. identify issues regarding the agency or its governance that may be appropriate to investigate, improve, remedy, or eliminate; c. determine whether an agency is operating in a transparent and efficient manner; d. identify opportunities to streamline programs and services while maintaining the mission of the agency and its programs; and e. review the surface water permitting process in Texas, including previous legislative attempts to modify the process, and assess the potential effects of these and other changes.
Committee:	House Natural Resources
Title:	Interim Report
Subjects:	Aquifers | Environmental flows | Groundwater | Oil spills | Texas State Water Plan | Water finance | Water supplies |
Library Call Number:	L1836.83 N218h
Session:	83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version:	View report [112 pages]
Charges:	This report should address the charges below.
1.	Monitor the implementation of HB 4, 83rd R.S. and SJR 1, 83rd R.S. and the progress of the Texas Water Development Board and other entities in implementing this legislation to provide a stable, long-term funding source for the State Water Plan.
2.	Evaluate the availability, management, and development of groundwater in the state. Consider the economic, environmental, and social impacts of groundwater usage and production in the agricultural, municipal, and energy sectors. In particular, examine methods to facilitate further development of brackish groundwater resources and to improve the consistency and certainty of permitting by groundwater districts without undercutting reasonable regional and local regulation of groundwater.
3.	Explore opportunities to encourage voluntary protection and stewardship of privately owned lands in support of the state’s water supply and to protect environmental flow needs in Texas rivers. Examine methods in which state agencies, water rights holders, and non-governmental organizations can work together through programs like the Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Program and the Texas Water Trust.
4.	Examine strategies to enhance the use of aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) projects, including a review of existing ASR facilities in Texas and elsewhere.
5.	Monitor the use of funds provided or made available to Texas in relation to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and make recommendations on the appropriate use of these funds in the future. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Appropriations)
6.	Conduct legislative oversight and monitoring of the agencies and programs under the committee’s jurisdiction and the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 83rd Legislature. In conducting this oversight, the committee should: a. consider any reforms to state agencies to make them more responsive to Texas taxpayers and citizens; b. identify issues regarding the agency or its governance that may be appropriate to investigate, improve, remedy, or eliminate; c. determine whether an agency is operating in a transparent and efficient manner; and d. identify opportunities to streamline programs and services while maintaining the mission of the agency and its programs.
Committee:	House Natural Resources
Title:	Interim Report
Library Catalog Title:	House Committee on Natural Resources, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 2006 : a report to the House of Representatives, 80th Texas Legislature
Subjects:	Environmental flows | Irrigation | Municipal utility districts | Soil erosion | Special utility districts | Wastewater management | Water conservation | Water districts | Water rights |
Library Call Number:	L1836.79 N218h
Session:	79th R.S. (2005)
Online version:	View report [68 pages  File size: 8,003 kb]
Charges:	This report should address the charges below.
1.	Explore the benefits and concerns associated with Municipal Utility Districts (MUDs), including as assessment of the appropriateness of granting districts the additional powers of other special districts. Evaluate the impact of MUDs on economic growth and development, as well as the overall tax implications, including and evaluation of the provision of municipal and county services on residents lining in MUDs. Review public disclosure and notification requirements associated with MUDs, as well as bonding authority of some districts.
2.	Consider the potential for increased outdoor water savings through landscape water conservation, including irrigation audit requirements, turf replacement programs, and the provision of certain landscape options for prospective home buyers.
3.	Examine state wastewater re-use policies, including an assessment of potential changes or clarifications to the Texas Water Code.
4.	Continue the study of the Commission on Water for Environmental Flows, and further evaluate options for providing adequate environmental flows.
5.	Determine if a new comprehensive water conservation program is needed within the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board, focusing on water conservation and water supply enhancement. (Joint interim charge with the House Committee on Agriculture and Livestock)
Committee:	Joint Water For Environmental Flows
Title:	Interim Report
Library Catalog Title:	Interim report
Subjects:	Environmental flows | Environmental protection | Rivers | Water planning | Water rights | Water supplies |
Library Call Number:	L1836.78 W291f
Session:	78th R.S. (2003)
Online version:	View report [21 pages  File size: 454 kb]
Charge:	This report should address the charge below.
1.	The study commission shall conduct public hearings and study public policy implications for balancing the demands on the water resources of the state resulting from a growing population with the requirements of the riverine, bay, and estuary systems including granting permits for instream flows dedicated to environmental needs or bay and estuary inflows, use of the Texas Water Trust, and any other issues that the study commission determines have importance and relevance to the protection of environmental flows. In evaluating the options for providing adequate environmental flows, the study commission shall take notice of the strong public policy imperative that exists in this state recognizing that environmental flows are important to the biological health of our parks, game preserves, and bay and estuary systems and are high priorities in the permitting process. The study commission shall specifically address ways that the ecological soundness of these systems will be ensured in the water allocation process.
Committee:	Joint Water For Environmental Flows
Title:	Science Advisory Committee report
Library Catalog Title:	Science Advisory Committee report
Subjects:	Environmental flows | Environmental protection | Rivers | Water planning | Water rights | Water supplies |
Library Call Number:	L1836.78 W291fs
Session:	78th R.S. (2003)
Online version:	View report [158 pages  File size: 3,194 kb]
Charge:	This report should address the charge below.
1.	The study commission shall conduct public hearings and study public policy implications for balancing the demands on the water resources of the state resulting from a growing population with the requirements of the riverine, bay, and estuary systems including granting permits for instream flows dedicated to environmental needs or bay and estuary inflows, use of the Texas Water Trust, and any other issues that the study commission determines have importance and relevance to the protection of environmental flows. In evaluating the options for providing adequate environmental flows, the study commission shall take notice of the strong public policy imperative that exists in this state recognizing that environmental flows are important to the biological health of our parks, game preserves, and bay and estuary systems and are high priorities in the permitting process. The study commission shall specifically address ways that the ecological soundness of these systems will be ensured in the water allocation process.
Supporting documents
Committee:	Joint Water For Environmental Flows
Title:	Committee documentation: Science Advisory Committee tape logs, May 21, June 18, and July 29, 2004; agenda, June 18, 2004
Library Catalog Title:	Minutes
Library Call Number:	L1836.78 W291FM
Session:	78th R.S. (2003)
Online version:	View document [6 pages  File size: 425 kb]

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