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Lake Travis is pictured in July.<\/p>\n
Sara Diggins\/Austin American-Statesman<\/p>\n
The Lower Colorado River Authority<\/a> is poised to vote Wednesday on changes to the plan that governs how water is managed in Lakes Travis and Buchanan<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 a decision that will shape how Central Texas allocates water for years to come.<\/p>\n The authority\u2019s board is scheduled to consider amendments to its Water Management Plan at a meeting in Austin. The plan dictates how the LCRA, which operates the Highland Lakes, balances water supplies for municipal customers such as Austin and for agricultural users downstream, including coastal rice farmers.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The proposed revisions<\/a> come as municipal demand in Central Texas continues to climb. Projections show city water use could increase 24% between 2020 and 2032, while agricultural demand is expected to decline by 18% over the same period. In response, the LCRA is proposing to reduce the amount of water it can release for irrigation and to raised the lake-level thresholds that trigger a cutoff to farmers.<\/p>\n In practical terms, the changes would further prioritize drinking water supplies during drought<\/a>, tightening limits on crop irrigation to ensure the lakes remain high enough to serve cities even in a repeat of the historic 2008\u20132015 drought. Despite those stakes\u00a0\u2014 and unlike past revisions that ignited intense regional disputes\u00a0\u2014 this update cycle has drawn comparatively muted public controversy, even as stakeholders on both sides continue to press their concerns.<\/p>\n The LCRA has maintained a water management plan since the late 1980s and last updated it in 2020. State environmental regulators require periodic revisions.<\/p>\n Lake Travis is pictured in July.<\/p>\n Sara Diggins\/Austin American-Statesman<\/p>\n One of the authority\u2019s primary\u00a0drought-management tools is\u00a0cutting off water\u00a0deliveries\u00a0to coastal rice farmers in three southeastern Texas counties. The management plan outlines when and how\u00a0those curtailments occur.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n During previous droughts, changes to the plan have proven controversial<\/a>, sparking debate among farmers and other lake users about how much water to release.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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