The next couple days will be busy ones at the headquarters of the Lower Colorado River Authority. The agency that controls the water flowing from the Highland Lakes to the Gulf Coast is set to approve a new Water Management Plan on Tuesday. But before it makes a final decision, it will hear from the […]
A graduate student at the University of Texas has come up with a model that may help Texas overcome both its water and electricity problems in one fell swoop.
Another week, another update from the National Drought Monitor. While there hasn’t been much movement this week, there are some signs of continued improvement: Three percent of the state moved out of the highest level of drought, “exceptional,” meaning now only twenty percent of Texas is in “exceptional” drought. That’s the lowest level since last […]
What do you do when wells run dry? That far-off question has become a sudden reality for the residents of Spicewood Beach, the first town to run dry during the Texas drought. This video, shot by Jeff Heimsath for StateImpact Texas, tells the story of how the wells began to fail in Spicewood Beach, and […]
Let’s say you live next to one of the Highland Lakes in Central Texas. And let’s say you have an expansive lawn that needs lots of water. Couldn’t you just run a line from your sprinkler to the lake and pump water out to keep your lawn green? Sure, you could do that. But you’d […]
The current drought in Texas, which broke single-year records, has shown dramatic abatement in recent months as rains surprised the state. It was supposed to be a drier-than-average winter, but thankfully forecasts can be wrong. Maybe you’re curious to see how far Texas has to go before things get back to “normal?” Quite a way. […]
When it comes to beef production, Texas is at the top. There are twice as many cows in the state as Nebraska, the second biggest cattle-producing state. But after the devastating effects of the drought, with agricultural losses estimated in the billions, hay prices nearly tripling and massive selloffs of cattle, will Texas be able to make a comeback? […]
It’s been a few weeks since the small community of Spicewood Beach, which about 1,100 people call home, ran out of water. It was the first town to run dry during the Texas drought. Since then, the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA), which owns and operates the wells in the town, has been paying an […]
Yesterday evening on the way home from work, the above note was found on the windshield of one of our cars. Another was found on the car of a KUT News reporter, our local radio partners. Since we’re never ones to let a good tip go unnoticed, we did some Googling on the note. And […]
In a season that was nearly lost to toxic algae blooms caused by the record single-year drought, Texas Gulf oysters have made a startling comeback. It could be the latest start ever for Texas oyster season, but recent rains have been sending fresh water into the Gulf, flushing out the red tide that made the oysters […]
StateImpact seeks to inform and engage local communities with broadcast and online news focused on how state government decisions affect your lives.
Learn More »