GBRA Designated Region 11 Guadalupe Flood Planning Group Sponsor

SEGUIN, Texas – The Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority has been designated as the planning group sponsor for the Region 11 Guadalupe Flood Planning Group. The group took the action at its inaugural meeting in November.

Regional sponsors are charged with applying for and receiving financial assistance from the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB), entering into and managing a contract with TWDB, procuring and managing technical consultants, serving as an administrative agent in organizing meetings, posting public notices, and ensuring the delivery of the first regional flood plan.

Each self-governed regional flood planning group is responsible for identifying and assessing specific flood risks, as well as setting flood risk reduction goals, identifying and recommending flood management evaluations and strategies, and flood mitigation projects to reduce flood risk in their regions.

Additionally, the groups will focus on reducing existing flood risks to life and property and on floodplain management, in general, to avoid increasing flood risk in the future by keeping future populations out of the way of flood flows.

Senate Bill 8, 86^th Texas Legislature, created a state flood planning process for Texas, through which TWDB will be administering state and regional flood plans.

TWDB designated 15 planning area regions, including the Guadalupe River Basin (Region 11). The first regional flood plans are due in January 2023, which will culminate in the first statewide flood plan due September 1, 2024.

The Region 11 covers Kerr, Kendall, Blanco, Comal, Hays, Guadalupe, Caldwell, Gonzales, DeWitt, Goliad, Victoria, and Calhoun counties, as well as portions of Bandera, Gillespie, Travis, Bastrop, Fayette, and Lavaca counties.

The initial Region 11 Guadalupe Flood planning group consists of 12 voting members, including

• Chairman Doug Miller, representing agricultural interests | President, Miller & Miller Insurance, New Braunfels

• John A. Johnston, P.E., representing counties | Texas Licensed Professional Engineer and Nationally Certified Floodplain Manager, Victoria

• Annalisa Peace, representing environmental interests | Executive Director, Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance, San Antonio

• Beth Parker, representing flood districts | General Manager, DeWitt County Drainage District No. 1 and Certified Floodplain Manager, Cuero

• Kevin Stone, representing industries | Environmental Manager, Martin Marietta, San Antonio

• Joe Pantalion, P.E., representing municipalities | Assistant City Manager, City of San Marcos

• Kimberly Meitzen, PhD, representing the public | Associate Professor, Texas State University Geography Department, San Marcos

• Brian Perkins, P.E., representing river authorities | Water Resources Engineer, Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority, Seguin

• Gian Villarreal, P.E., representing small business | Owner, Seagull PME, New Braunfels

• Ronald (Ron) Fieseler, P.G., representing water districts | General Manager, Blanco Pedernales Groundwater Conservation District, Johnson City
• Joseph McDaniel representing water utilities | Field Supervisor, Aqua America, Kerrville

The representative board position for power generation utilities is currently vacant. The Region 11 members meet monthly.