Deep Water Intakes

Two enormous deep water intakes are planned for Lake Travis . Both intakes will be at or near the bottom of the Colorado River channel. No other intakes go so deep and withdraw so much. These intakes are being placed on the bottom for only one reason, to get the last drop of water from Lake Travis in a drought.

The Lake is deeper as it gets closer to the dam, so the intakes in the upper lake simply will not be able to compete. Is your water provider's intake on the main channel in a deeper part of the lake? How much of the cost of lowering your intake will you have to pay so your family can have water when these intakes activate?

These intakes are going so deep because the simulated drought of record places Lake Travis at the 578 MSL. The current drought of record is at the 612 MSL.  How much less firm water does LCRA have to sell at the 578?

The cities installing these $500 million structures say Lake Travis is a "reliable" source of water. If they believe it is RELIABLE, get off the bottom! The Lake fell almost 8 feet in June, 2008. Compare this to almost 5 feet in June during the drought of 2006. More people are using way too much water!

The City of Austin Water Treatment Plant #4 will have the largest and deepest intake. With a final capacity of 300 million gallons a day (MGD), it is planned for the bottom of the deepest part of the River channel below Beau Theriot's home by his restaurant, the Oasis. The pipeline will tunnel under Balcones Canyonland Preserve to a shaft and an 18,000 square foot pump station (one of at least 2) on Bullick Hollow. A second shaft and tunnel from the pump station will go under Bullick Hollow to a gigantic treatment plant at RR 620. The treatment plant sight is fenced. The partial project might be on line in 2014. Considerable noise and disruption is expected during construction both on Lake Travis and on Bullick Hollow and RR 620. This project is not only being placed in scenic views surrounding Lake Travis and Balcones Canyonland Preserve, but it is also amid a developed area with heavy traffic. [Click here for more]

Austin currently has 2 intakes in Lake Austin. All the City of Austin water customers rely on a single source of water, the drought/flood prone, over-stressed, over-promised Colorado River .

BCRUA The Cities of Leander, Cedar Park and Round Rock formed Brushy Creek Regional Utility Authority (BCRUA) to source Lake Travis water. This intake will have a final capacity to withdraw 142 million gallons a day (MGD) and take it to Williamson County in the Brazos River watershed--never to be returned to the Colorado River basin.

Leander and Cedar Park have existing Lake Travis water treatment facilities. Instead of developing a back up source, they are planning another Lake Travis project into the same single, drought- prone source. The Simsboro aquifer is considered one of the most prolific, rechargeable and sustainable aquifers in the state. Why hasn't a regional aquifer plan that would also include Chisholm Trail SUD been estimated? Why wouldn't Leander and Cedar Park want two sources of water? Leander, Cedar Park and Round Rock have spent $500,000 on PR Firms in the last two years, but have refused to authorize a $40,000 independent engineering review of the Lake Travis and Simsboro Aquifer options. How many $500M projects can they afford? Lake Travis is the cities choice for a 50 year reliable water source, is it yours?

The project concerns are numerous. [BCRUA Project Concerns]

Cedar Park and Leander get all their water from Lake Travis. Round Rock has 3 other sources. ALL cities should have more than one source of water! [BCRUA more].