Surface water supply project to provide a long-term dependable water supply to the city
PFLUGERVILLE, TEXAS, November 26, 2001—Representatives from the city of Pflugerville today announced that they have agreed to negotiate an historic pact with the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) that would guarantee Pflugerville a secure water supply for its customers for the next 20 years.
The city is also moving forward on a project to get the water from the Colorado River to the city of Pflugerville. This project includes building a river intake and pump station on the Colorado River and up to a 17-mile pipeline to deliver the raw water to Pflugerville, a new surface reservoir (150 acre plus lake) to store the river water, and a water treatment plant.
"There is probably no single factor more instrumental to the long-term health of a city - including quality of life, the economy, or public safety - than the supply of water," said Steve Jones, Pflugerville City Manager. "Today, we find ourselves at a point when we should be making long-term plans for Pflugerville and we have the opportunity to do that. The drought of the late 1990's, and reports from the Texas Water Development Board, made it clear that the Edwards can no longer supply enough water to meet the city's needs. With this agreement, the people of Pflugerville can be assured that there will be enough water for themselves, their children and grandchildren, even during the driest of times," Jones said.
Pflugerville's water supply serves 18,000 customers over a 30-square mile utility service area. The water supply currently relies on groundwater from the Edwards Aquifer and the water level in the aquifer is declining due to increased demands by Pflugerville and other rapidly growing cities in the area.
The city of Pflugerville's water use averaged 1.4 million gallons per day (mgd) in 1995. Five-years later the city's average day water use has almost doubled to 2.7 mgd. Average day water use for the city is projected to increase to almost 9.0 mgd by the year 2020, more than triple current demands.
Earlier this year, Pflugerville hired HDR Engineering to do a feasibility study to bring water from the Colorado River to Pflugerville, treat the raw surface water to drinking water standards, and connect the new supply to the city's water distribution system.
HDR proposed a project that would take water from the river at a point just east of where US183 crosses the river, pump the raw water to Pflugerville in a pipeline, store the raw water in a small surface reservoir near Pflugerville, construct a modern water treatment plant, and pipe the treated water to the city's water distribution system.
Pflugerville has contracted with the city of Austin for a supplemental water supply. Limitations on water use in the city of Austin water supply contract have required the city to evaluate other options to meet long-term water supply needs.
For more information go to the city of Pflugerville web site at http://www.cityofpflugerville.com/Pfyi/Colorado.
