Published: July 18, 2008 01:58 am            

Water board, tree farm compromise on well use

JACKSONVILLE — It took two lawyers debating the finer points of Texas’ water law, a basic hydrology lesson and more than an hour of deliberation in order to reach an agreement, but the board of directors of the Neches and Trinity Valleys Groundwater Conservation District and representatives from HRC Cherokee Tree Farm LP eventually did reach a compromise which will allow the entity to use its wells to fill two lakes on their property.

The discord stemmed from the fact that HRC felt that the operating permits they received back in January of 2007 allowed them to use their wells to top-off two lakes they intend to create on their property.

“We come before you today asking that the board acknowledge the operating permits we applied for and were granted back in 2007, those being for irrigation and for topping-off the lakes,” said Gina Norris of HRC. “We’ve typed up a transcript of that conversation in January, and they clearly show that both of those purposes were discussed here at that initial meeting.”

Attorney Lynn Sherman, hydrogeologist Mike Thornhill and forester James Houser also spoke on behalf of HRC.

The district, on the other hand, contends that the permits HRC received last year were specifically for irrigation purposes only, and that topping-off their lakes with well water would be a recreational use — and thus in violation of their permit.

“The well drilling application document shows that the nature and purpose of all four wells is for irrigation purposes. During the conversation with Gina, recreational use might have been mentioned, but the permit for these wells was for irrigation use only,” said Roy Rodgers, general manager of NTVGCD.

After much discussion and a few tense moments, a settlement was reached which will allow HRC officials to move forward with their plans to build the lakes. Their application for the lakes had been blocked by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, pending approval by the district.

“The board decided to approve a letter to TCEQ with a clarification that they can run water into their lakes, but we did not change the purposes for the lakes on their operating permits,” Rodgers said. “We never wanted to keep them from getting a permit for the lakes, we just wanted to maintain an acceptable level of control over the water, and this agreement allows that.”

According to Rodgers, the district’s drought contingency plan allows them to curtail irrigation pumping if the public need requires it.

He also said that while the proposed lakes would be quite large, the fact that HRC owns a 7,000-acre tract of land means the bodies of water will actually use less water per acre than the typical homeowner.

In other news, the district held public hearings regarding drilling and operating permit applications submitted by Moore Station Water Systems Council and Aqua Texas Inc. for public water supply wells. Although no one from the public spoke in-person during the hearings, the district did receive four pieces of written correspondence regarding the applications — three in opposition to the Aqua Texas well and one requesting more information concerning the Moore Station wells.

Following the public hearings, the district voted unanimously in favor of both applications. The Moore Station WSC wells will service the Moore Station community of Henderson County, and the Aqua Texas well will be placed east of Bullard.

Action was also taken by the board authorizing the district’s legal counsel, John Stover, to seek legal action against Pine Mountain Ranch and/or Swinney Management Co. and Caddo Creek Club regarding violations of the district’s rules. The Pine Mountain subdivision is located in Anderson County, and Caddo Creek can be found in Henderson County.

Resolutions passed by the board claim that both entities have failed to obtain permits for non-exempt wells they own and operate, have neglected to provide quarterly production reports and have not paid production fees as required by state law.

Stover was directed by the board to enforce the district’s rules by seeking “an injunction, mandatory injunction or other appropriate remedy; including civil penalties, reasonable attorney’s fees, expert witness fees and other costs incurred by the district.”

The board also heard from Stover regarding the district’s ongoing legal troubles with Eagle’s Bluff Golf Course, near Bullard. Stover indicated that the civil case was nearing an end.

“Roy and I are still deliberating on how much civil penalty to seek from Eagle’s Bluff in default judgment. They have hereunto abandoned their legal defense in the matter, and we are trying to decide upon a number that the judge will consider to be reasonable,” he said. “Hopefully we will be able to bring you a report finalizing this matter at the next meeting.”

In other business the board approved:

• the minutes from previous meetings;

• discussion of district reports; and

• paying the bills.

The NTV Groundwater Conservation District meets at 1:30 p.m. on the third Thursday of each month at their offices at 212 S. Main St. in Jacksonville. The public is invited to attend all meetings.

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Kelly Young is a reporter for the Jacksonville Daily Progress. He may be reached via e-mail at kyoung@jacksonvilleprogress.com.

        

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