Rep. Carrie Isaac, the Republican who represents Canyon Lake in Texas House District 73, said she’s asked the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to determine whether Canyon Lake might qualify for watershed-specific protections already in place for Highland Lakes, a chain of freshwater reservoirs in Central Texas.
The issue is a hot topic with local residents fighting to keep developers like Lennar from building homes in areas like Fischer.
“Constituents across House District 73 have raised real concerns about the long-term health of the Canyon Lake watershed,” she posted on social media today.
In a July 28 letter addressed to TCEQ Chairwoman Brooke Paup, Isaac asked the TCEQ to
- Conduct a cumulative watershed-impact assessment addressing projected growth and drought scenarios.
- Evaluate whether current permitting standards protect against incremental degradation.
- Determine whether enhanced measures, including potential watershed-specific protections comparable to 30 TAC (Texas Administrative Code) Chapter 311, are warranted.
She said TCEQ has “clear existing authority” to strengthen protections.
TCEQ precursor Texas Water Commission in the 1980s banned the discharge of pollutants, including treated wastewater, from utilities surrounding lakes Travis, Buchanan, Inks, LBJ, Marble Falls and Austin.
These freshwater reservoirs on the lower Colorado River, northwest of Austin, are managed by the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) and protected under 30 TAC Chapter 311.
When these watershed rules were adopted decades ago, they did not include Canyon Lake.
State Sen. Dr. Donna Campbell, who represents Canyon Lake and Fischer in District 25, mailed a similar letter to the TCEQ in February.
She gave the regulatory body 30 days to respond to her request for an evaluation of Canyon Lake’s watershed to determine whether existing regulatory measures adequately prevent gradual degradation under projected growth and hydrological issues.
The move reflected her constituents’ growing concern that TCEQ will approve Lennar Homes’ request for a wastewater permit that would allow it to discharge up to 600,000 gallons of treated wastewater per day into Potters Creek and Canyon Lake for Broken Cedar Ranch, a proposed 850-home development in Fischer.
Like Isaac, Campbell said TCEQ has clear, existing statutory authority to protect high-quality waters.
In a February letter to a constituent, she said her office advocates for a more holistic review process that considers the aggregate load on waterways and pushes for stricter “beneficial reuse” requirements.
“We deserve a system where the long-term health of our aquifer and all tributaries are prioritized over the short-term profits of out-of-state developers.”