As the fight over Electro Purification’s proposed water permit starts to boil, representatives from the Houston-based firm Monday sought to keep Hays County out of the fray.
Despite hours of deliberation, the State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH) is opting to wait until October to determine who will be a part of the EP permit battle.
Monday’s hearing in Austin is the latest chapter in the EP saga. The water firm is seeking a permit from the Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Conservation District (BSEACD) to pump nearly one billion gallons of groundwater per year from the Trinity Aquifer for wholesale use.
In July, BSEACD’s board of directors approved a contested case hearing on the permit, at the request of EP.
On Sept. 17, landowners and representatives tried to make their case a part of the contested case proceedings.
One of those requesting party status was Lon Shell, Hays County Pct. 3 commissioner, who represented the county in its search for party status.
“Jacob’s Well is at the headwaters of Cypress Creek and is a preserve and park within the Hays County park system that is owned by the county,” Shell said. “If pumping is allowed, there may not be a Jacob’s Well.”
Edmond and Eddie McCarthy, attorneys for EP, argued Hays County was not in the immediate area affected by EP’s drilling. Additionally, EP’s legal team said the county does not have the authority to regulate groundwater, which can only be done by groundwater districts.
Shell argued Hays County has land in the immediate area of impact, including water reserves off of FM 2325 in Wimberley that would service citizens in the case of a fire. If the county’s wells go dry, Shell said the county would not be able to serve those areas in an emergency.
James Chisholm, a landowner and rancher living within one mile of EP’s wells, said EP pumping 2.5 million gallons per day from the Trinity Aquifer would have a negative impact on his business.
“EP is forcing me to give up my livelihood,” Chisholm said. “I make $120,000 from selling cattle, which rely on the water from my wells. If my well goes dry, I will lose everything. EP is devastating my rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
Eddie McCarthy said Chisholm’s well falls within the jurisdiction of the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District (HTGCD), which should disqualify him from affected party status. EP submitted its permit application through the Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Conservation District (BSEACD).
Joanne Summerhays, the administrative law judge on the case, said the entities seeking party status are expected to submit briefs to SOAH by Oct. 8 for review; an additional reply brief is due Oct. 16.
Summerhays will determine affected party status at that time. Final hearings on the case are expected by summer 2019.
