Har Harris - is - Galv alveston Subsidence District eston - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Har Harris - is - Galv alveston Subsidence District eston Subsidence District History of Subsidence, Regulation, and W ater Management in the Houston Region Michael J. T urco - General Manger R E G I O N A L F L O O D M A N A G E M E N T C O U N C I L J U L Y 2 0 , 2 0 1 6 H O U S T O N , T E X A S

Outline • Brief History of Subsidence • Hydrogeology of the Gulf Coast and Subsidence • History of the District Regulatory Plan • Regulatory Plan successes • Regulatory area three conversion requirements • Water Conservation and the Path Forward

What is Subsidence? • Subsidence is the lowering of the elevation of land surface over time. • Subsidence can have a wide range of consequences depending on the location of the occurrence and its proximity to surface drainage and coastal zones • In this area, clay compaction resulting from groundwater withdrawal is the primary cause for subsidence

Pe Permanent Inunda undation tion due due to to Sub Subsid idence ce – Goose Goose Cr Creek eek Oi Oil Field Field 1918 1918 ‐ 1926 1926 Nearly 3 feet of subsidence occurred due to shallow fluid withdrawal. Today, remnants exist in San Jacinto Bay as much of the field has been inundated.

Hy Hydr drog ogeology eology

Mechani Mechanism fo for sub subsidence idence in in the the Gul Gulf Coas Coast

Subsidence has consequences

Br Brownw ownwood ood ‐ 1944 1944

Br Brownw ownwood ood ‐ 1953 1953

Br Brownw ownwood ood ‐ 1978 1978

HGSD 1976 HGSD 1976 Re Regulatory Ar Areas eas Area of Concentrated Emphasis (ACE) Wells within the Area of Concentrated Emphasis (the ACE) were required to search for alternative supplies to groundwater. If an alternative supply existed, permittees were required to reduce their groundwater pumpage.

HGSD HGSD 1985 1985 Re Regulatory Ar Areas eas 8 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 Area 1: 90% GW reduction by 1990 Area 2: 80% GW reduction by 1990 1 Area 3: 80% GW reduction by 1995 Area 4: 80% GW reduction by 2000 Area 5: 80% GW reduction by 2000 Area 6: 80% GW reduction by 2005 Area 7: 80% GW reduction by 2010 Area 8: no reduction required

HGSD HGSD 1992 1992 Re Regulatory Ar Areas eas 7 5 4 6 3 2 Area 1: 10% groundwater Area 2: 20% groundwater 1 Area 3: 80% GW reduction by 1995 Area 4: 80% GW reduction by 2002 Area 5: 80% GW reduction by 2005 Area 6: 80% GW reduction by 2010 Area 7: 80% GW reduction by 2020

HGSD HGSD 1999 1999 Re Regulatory Ar Areas eas 3 2 1

Ke Key El Elem emen ents ts ‐ 1999 1999 Re Regulatory Plan Plan 3 Areas 1 & 2 ‐ Converted Area 1 GW reduced to 10% or less of TWD 2 Area 2 GW reduced to 20% or less of TWD 1 Area 3 Reduce GW pumpage by 30% by 2010 Reduce GW pumpage by 70% by 2020 Reduce GW pumpage by 80% by 2030 Exemptions: Agricultural Irrigation & Economic Hardships GRPs were due in 2003: 4 main Area 3 GRPS (Houston, NHCRWA, WHCRWA & CHCRWA) Disincentive Fee currently set at $5.00 / 1,000 gallons

Br Brownw ownwood ood ‐ 2002 2002

2013 2013 Re Regulatory Plan Plan Upda Update Utilized data from the 2010 Census and Annual Water ‐ Level and Subsidence Data collected by the USGS and the Subsidence District Cooperative project between both Subsidence Districts and the Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District Brought together a group of consultants to help develop the plan: ◦ Metro Study and University of Houston: Conducted population projections and migration prediction ◦ Scott Marr (Fugro): Updated multiple local scale analytical subsidence models in the Houston Region ◦ Mark Kasmarek (USGS): Updated the regional groundwater flow model ◦ John Seifert (LBG ‐ Guyton): Technical expertise and developed the predictive model data sets ◦ Mike Reedy (Freeze and Nichols): Project Manager and Regulatory Plan development ◦ Received additional input from the Texas Water Development Board

POPULATION BY HGSD REGULATORY AREA 4,000,000 3,233,836 3,382,481 3,528,168 3,500,000 3,076,529 2,905,158 3,000,000 2,710,303 1,566,279 1,702,190 1,848,040 1,986,120 2,122,327 2,259,472 2,401,086 2,500,000 2,250,944 2,000,000 1,500,000 566,921 639,326 682,429 717,406 749,774 779,391 808,575 1,000,000 500,000 ‐ 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060 2070 2080 HGSD_AREA_1 HGSD_AREA_2 HGSD_AREA_3

1 square mile grid

HGSD HGSD Ar Area ea 3 Con Conver ersion sion Scenarios Scenarios 30% Scenario 1 (No Conversion After 2010) 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060 2070 30% 80% 70% Scenario 2 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060 2070 (Current Regulatory Plans) 30% 80% 60% Scenario 3 2000 2010 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2050 2060 2070 30% 80% 55% Scenario 4 2010 2020 2025 2030 2050 2060 2070 2000 2040

Harris Harris ‐ Gal Galves eston Sub Subsidence idence Di District ct Re Regulatory Plan Plan • Updated in 2013 • Areas 1 and 2 – Fully Converted • Area 1 GW Reduced to 10% or less of TWD • Area 2 GW Reduced to 20% or less of TWD 3 • Area 3 • GW Reduced to 70% or less of TWD 2010 • GW Reduced to 40% or less of TWD 2025 2 • GW Reduced to 20% or less of TWD 2035 • Exemptions: Agricultural Irrigation 1 • Non compliance subject to disincentive fee = $7.00/1,000 gallons

Re Regulating gr groundw oundwater to to st stop sub subsidence idence – balancing balancing needs, needs, availa ailability bility, and and im impact pact • The Harris ‐ Galveston and Fort Bend Subsidence Districts use regulatory plans and rules developed by each board to stop subsidence in the region. • The regulatory approach is focused on the conversion of a portion of the Total Water Demand to an alternative source of water (Surface Water, Reuse, Brackish Desalination of Seawater, or others). • Consideration is given to the availability of alternative sources, expected population growth, patterns of potential development, and predicted subsidence based on several hypothetical scenarios. • Both the HGSD and FBSD Regulatory plans were updated in 2013.

Evangeline Aquifer Water Level Change 1977 ‐ 2013

HGSD HGSD Cooper Cooperativ ive GPS GPS Netw Network ork

Observed Land ‐ Surface Deformation (subsidence where negative and uplift), 2000 ‐ 2015

Observed Land ‐ Surface Deformation (subsidence where negative and uplift), 2000 ‐ 2015

Future Water Supplies • Luce Bayou Interbasin Transfer Project – Raw water supply transfer from Trinity River to Lake Houston • Northeast Water Purification Plant (NEWPP) Expansion ‐‐ Treated water supply from Lake Houston • Transmission Lines from NEWPP • Internal Distribution Systems Courtesy: City of Houston

More than just a regulatory plan… • Science and Research • Desalination of brackish groundwater • Aquifer Storage and Recovery • Water Conservation • Elementary School Program • Outdoor Irrigation Campaign

Elementary School Program Update • Students enrolled through February 2016: 50,042 (worth about 4.2 billion gallons of series B groundwater credits) – • January 2016 • HGSD Water Detective Website revisions completed per District requirements • February 2016 • Conducted teacher focus group • District documentation for the Water Smart recognition sent to sponsors • Enrollment above average based on this time in previous years • May 2016 • Beta test of water conservation app “there’s an app for that now!”

Elementary School Program ‐ Application

Outdoor Irrigation Campaign • The campaign will focus on landscape irrigation, both residential and commercial • Two primary components to the implementation • WaterMyYard Program with Texas A&M University • Installation of ET network and development of District specific webtools to educate and notify registered users on the best water management practices to ensure a vibrant landscape while conserving water • Landscape Irrigation Best Management Practices – Outreach and Media • Working with other local entities (i.e. City of Houston, Water Authorities, MUDs, Municipalities), develop and disseminate similar messages across the District area. Unified message, unified purpose. • Working with the water community to provide a focused effort.

Evapotranspiration – Why does it matter? • Evapotranspiration is the measure of two components of the water cycle: • Transpiration – use of water by plants • Evaporation – water loss due to phase shift from liquid to gas to the atmosphere • ET is measured using multiple sensors and can be influenced by landscape vegetation, canopy, land ‐ use and others. • For the purpose of this project, a ET network will be established based on recommendations from Texas A&M with stations located at strategic partner secured facilities • ET data will be communicated to the A&M database via cellular modem, District staff will maintain the network, with A&M providing technical guidance. ET data collected could also be used in the regulatory planning modelling efforts.

ET Network Stations

WaterMyYard