Llano Estacado Regional Water Planning Group

For The Southern High Plains of Texas

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TEXAS WATER DEVELOPMENT BOARD APPROVES WATER PLAN

FOR THE LLANO ESTACADO (REGION O) REGIONAL WATER PLANNING GROUP

AUSTIN (April 18, 2006) – Today the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) approved the adopted regional water plan for the Llano Estacado (Region O) Regional Water Planning Area.

According to TWDB rules 31 Texas Administrative Code §357.14, upon receipt of a regional water plan adopted by the regional water planning group, the TWDB will consider approval of such plan based on listed criteria.  TWDB staff reviewed the adopted regional water plan, resolved items as needed, and determined that all requirements in statute and TWDB rules have been met.

The Llano Estacado Regional Water Planning Area encompasses 21 counties in the Southern High Plains of Texas.  Although the region is located in the upstream parts of four major river basins (Canadian, Red, Brazos, and Colorado), almost no surface water leaves the region as runoff into these rivers.  Groundwater from the Ogallala Aquifer is the region’s primary source of water and is used at a rate that exceeds recharge.  The region’s primary economic base is agricultural crop and livestock production.  Cotton is the leading crop produced in the region, with an annual value of about $755 million, which is about 60 percent of the annual value of cotton grown in Texas.  The region is also home to 49 percent of the state’s confined animal feeding operations which generated over $2.4 billion in 2002.

Following the approval of the regional water plans, the TWDB will prepare the State Water Plan which will be provided to state leaders in January 2007, guiding the way Texans will meet their water supply needs through 2060.

The TWDB is the state agency charged with collecting and disseminating water-related data, assisting with regional planning and preparing the State Water Plan for the development of the state’s water resources, and administering cost-effective financial programs for the construction of water supply, wastewater treatment, flood control and agricultural water conservation projects.

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