TESPA Files Lawsuit Over Needmore Water Permit

Staff Reports

On Tuesday, the Trinity Edwards Springs Protection Association announced it had filed a suit to challenge Needmore’s Permit to withdraw millions of gallons of groundwater per year in Hays County.

The lawsuit was filed against Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Conservation District, who issued a permit allowing Needmore to pump approximately 289 million gallons of groundwater near Wimberley, Texas.

HB 3405, passed by the Texas Legislature in 2015, gave jurisdiction to BSEACD over previously unregulated portions of the Trinity Aquifer in Hays County including the land now giving rise to the Needmore Water LLC permit application.

According to TESPA, the litigation is concerned with a controversial provision that “grandfathered” certain existing wells, creating a two-step process that has been interpreted by BSEACD to substantially limit their ability to regulate the groundwater withdrawn from such wells.

TESPA alleges that the well was not in operation at the time the permit was filed and was incapable of being operated due to disrepair; therefore, the well in question did not qualify for grandfathered status.

According to Jim Blackburn, President of TESPA, “This issue of the regulation of this well is very important. We are fighting for our groundwater here in Hays County. Every drop counts and in this situation, 289 million gallons of water are being allowed to be taken without our having a chance to properly protect our property rights. This is wrong, and we are going to fight it. If we don’t rise up and fight now, our groundwater is going to be lost and our springs and rivers along with it. We are going to do our best to keep this from happening.”

The case of Trinity Edwards Springs Protection Association v. Barton Springs Edward Aquifer Conservation District was filed by attorney Jeff Mundy of Austin in Travis County District Court on Monday, February 10, 2020.