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April 20, 2022
News One Water

Report Finds Onsite Water Reuse Can Boost Affordable Housing, Spread Climate Resilience

Download the report Strategic integration of onsite water reuse can bring financial and quality-of-life benefits to affordable housing residents, according to an extensive new study by the National Wildlife Federation. The report finds onsite collection, treatment, and non-potable use of local water sources such as air conditioning condensate, rainwater, and graywater can pass on long-term savings to both residents and owners of multi-family affordable housing developments.  The authors also found that onsite systems in affordable housing help spread climate-resilient technologies to urban populations often passed-over in commercial water reuse and green infrastructure initiatives. “Onsite reuse can significantly contribute to the broader mission of affordable housing,” said Jorge Losoya, lead author of the report and a water...

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by Jonathan Seefeldt
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March 8, 2022
News Water Infrastructure

Texas Lawmakers Must Seize Historic Opportunity to Transform the State’s Fragile Water Infrastructure

Governor Abbott and Texas legislators should capitalize on the latest guidance from the Environmental Protection Agency and secure over $2 billion in allocated federal funds in order to transform the state’s fragile water infrastructure. The National Wildlife Federation’s Texas Coast and Water Program urges legislators to work with the Texas Water Development Board and draw on the EPA guidance to ensure all Texas communities have reliable access to clean drinking water. The EPA released a fact sheet to accompany its more in-depth memo detailing guidance on the State Revolving Fund implementation “Texas’ water infrastructure needs extensive investment,” said Amanda Fuller, director of the National Wildlife Federation’s Texas Coast and Water Program. “A single winter storm...

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by Jonathan Seefeldt
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March 3, 2022
Drought Groundwater News

The Window to Save the Hill Country is Closing

Download the report to learn more about the pressures facing the Hill Country Booming population growth and sprawling development, groundwater depletion, changing climate patterns, extreme droughts and floods, and a unique set of policy challenges threaten the natural resources that define the Hill County region—resources on which millions of people rely. A recently released report from the Texas Hill Country Conservation Network (THCCN) sets a baseline for eight key metrics to examine the current state of conservation and growth in the Hill Country. What it reveals is a region at a crossroads, facing tremendous threats to its future. “This report makes it perfectly clear—the Hill Country’s breathtaking vistas, natural spaces, clear waters, abundant wildlife, starry night...

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by Texas Living Waters
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January 15, 2022
One Water

One Water in Action: Austin’s New Permit Center Proves the City is Serious About Water Reuse

You don’t normally expect to learn about the true potential of blackwater on your way to getting a tree permit. That’s now likely to happen to attentive visitors to Austin’s new Permitting and Development Center (PDC). And it’s exactly what the city wants—developers confronting, face-to-face, the remarkable, cost-effective potential of water reuse technology. Six years ago, the most likely reason to visit what’s now 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Drive, would be to find a parking spot on your way to good ol’ Highland Mall. That mall is now history and that parking spot has transformed into Austin’s newly-opened PDC—a one-stop shop for Austin residents and developers looking for permitting and development services AND a showcase...

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by Jorge Losoya
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December 31, 2021
News

Texas Living Waters Releases 2021 Action Report

We are pleased to share with you our 2021 Year in Review, Investing in the Water Future of Texas. From more than a dozen published reports to podcasts to film festival awards, 2021 was a year we truly spread the word on Texas water. 2021 also signaled the 20-year anniversary of the Texas Living Waters Project. Our report includes a colorful timeline of TLW milestones illustrated by our very own One Water and Water Equity Fellow, Jorge Losoya. We invite you to dive into Investing to see where we’ve been this year and where we plan to go. Be sure to click on report covers and other images, there’s a wealth of interactivity and extra...

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by Texas Living Waters
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October 22, 2021
One Water Water Conservation

One Water in Action: Credit Human’s Light, Beautiful Footprint on San Antonio’s Pearl District

From a distance, the new Credit Human building in San Antonio, looks fairly non-descript. You might notice the solar panels crowding the rooftop, but this is a credit union, after all, how interesting can it be? Step a bit closer though, and you’ll start to notice unusual details…very unusual details. A fountain built to mimic aquifer rock, glazed ceramic medallions of bats and frogs, Harry Potter-esque hanging lanterns, tiles full of painted scenes from San Antonio lives, purple pipes snaking in and out of towering cisterns. The remarkable aesthetic and engineering flourishes on the exterior are signs of a much deeper re-think in how a building inhabits a space. “When we decided to build our...

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by Jorge Losoya
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October 18, 2021
Drought One Water Water Conservation

Austin is forging a path to a reliable water future

Six short years ago, Austin confronted a grim water future. The long dry tail of the 2011 drought combined with record population growth and increasingly concerning climate projections to paint an anxious picture of the city’s water supply. The Highland Lakes, the sole source of water for the city, were very low and facing an uncertain future.  Yet, thanks to an all-hands-on-deck lets-do-this effort, the city rallied from those bleak months, drawing on extensive community and expert feedback to put in place the pieces that would result in an ambitious water supply plan known as Water Forward which was adopted by City Council December 2018. Lake Travis during the 2011 drought, 46.52 feet below normal....

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by Jennifer Walker
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October 7, 2021
Texas legislature Water Utilities

Testifying at the Texas Legislature: We Need to Save Our Fragile Water Infrastructure

COVID-19's economic fallout is straining communities’ ability to protect their water. It's exacerbating historic, systemic inequities in Texas related to access to clean water, flood protection, and sewage service. Communities of color and under-resourced rural areas are particularly at risk. The American Rescue Plan Act provides funds specifically to help communities recover from problems like this, in fact, it explicitly authorizes water infrastructure projects. Despite this, the allocations proposed so far in the Texas Legislature do not include a single cent towards water. On Thursday, Oct 7, the National Wildlife Federation's Amanda Fuller spoke to senators about the need to rescue our fragile water infrastructure....

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by Texas Living Waters
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October 4, 2021
Environmental Flows Wildlife

Inadequate Environmental Flow Protection Threatens Keystone Species in Texas

Six Texas Freshwater Mussels Proposed for Endangered Species Protection Poor implementation of environmental flow protections is contributing to economic and environmental damage throughout Texas’ river basins, as illustrated by this month’s proposed listing of six native Texas freshwater mussel species for protection under the Endangered Species Act and this week’s announcement of the extinction of the San Marcos gambusia, a fish native to Central Texas.  According to new analysis by the National Wildlife Federation, implementation of Senate Bill 3 (SB 3, enacted in 2007) — Texas’ landmark regulatory process for flow protection — is faltering on multiple levels, with adopted flow standards falling far short of those recommended by scientists and ten-year review windows arriving...

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by Texas Living Waters
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