MANAGING OGALLALA AQUIFER DEPLETION IN THE NORTHEAST TEXAS PANHANDLE

The Panhandle Groundwater Conservation District covers all or parts of 9 counties in the Texas Panhandle. There are 5 different productive aquifers within the District. In this area, recharge is typically less than withdrawals. In some areas the water table has declined over 100 feet from pre-1950 levels; in others there has been no measurable change since records have been maintained. The District manages groundwater pumping based on recharge potential and other aquifer characteristics. The District has been subdivided into management zones, using aquifer characteristics and recharge potential as the primary criteria.

The District’s management plan has quantifiable, measurable goals and objectives. The primary goal of the Panhandle Groundwater Conservation District is to maintain 50% of the 1998 measured saturated thickness in 50 years. Rules implementing this goal are in place. No other organization in the state has adopted such a rule. The Panhandle Regional Water Planning group, one of the 16 state mandated regional planning groups has also adopted the “50-50” goal. However, the Planning Group does not have regulatory authority to enforce its goal.

Municipal groundwater projects began development during the 1940’s. Larger projects developed in the 1960’s involved surface water. As population and demand for water increases, there is more demand for groundwater. This demand competes with the existing irrigated agriculture producers in the District. Recent sales of groundwater rights from uncultivated range land have caused a “Boom” in water rights trading. One recently completed project uses groundwater to blend surface water to meet EPA secondary drinking water standards. A similar project proposes to construct up to 500 miles of pipeline to move water from the Panhandle to South Texas urban areas. Another group proposes to sell water at the wellhead for a fixed price. Several lawsuits have resulted from the legal maneuvering surrounding the water rights “deals”.

The District’s authority to regulate pumping and well spacing has been upheld in previous court rulings, however it cannot prohibit the export of water from the District. The District will have the opportunity to test the “50-50“ rule in court, and will defend that rule at any cost.