Welcome to AGUA!AGUA is San Antonio's most effective environmental action organization. We use law, science, and the support of volunteers and online activists to protect our city's source of drinking water, the Edwards Aquifer. You can help keep the Hill Country beautiful and our water clean. Look around, learn, and take action. |
Merienda videoDouble-click video to enlarge 
Thoughts on 281/1604Wherein we explain our environmental concerns about this project, and clarify our position regarding the proposed interchange. Read and comment... |
Act now on Camp Bullis area developmentOn July 8th, San Antonio's Planning Commission will consider an application for development of a 335-acre subdivsion in the Camp Bullis buffer zone. Read all the facts here. AGUA is asking for your help in pulling this item from the agenda and having the City call a moratorium on new development in the area - all of it on the Edwards Aquifer Recharge and Contributing zones. This calls for a united effort, much the same as AGUA's call for the moratorium that spurred passage of our water quality ordinances in 1995. We need veterans, neighborhoods, businesses, and the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce to support this effort. Please join us next Wednesday, contact the planning commissioners and your City Council representative, and tell everyone who would be sad to see the Army leave San Antonio. |
The Edwards Aquifer
Map of Edwards Aquifer in Bexar County (1.4 MB PDF document) |
Which candidates will protect your drinking water?AGUA quizzed the 2009 slate of City Council candidates to find out how committed they were to protecting the aquifer. Answers to questions such as "Do developers have the right to the highest possible return on their investment?" can be found by clicking here. The Unforeseen on DVDThis documentary chronicles the saga of a developer planning a 4,000 acre subdivision that threatened Austin's Barton Springs. When the community fought back, it sparked one of the nation’s earliest and most important environmental movements. $21.95 at The Cinema Guild AGUA files suit to protect endangered speciesAGUA and two other organizations filed suit to protect endangered species found only in the Edwards Aquifer and its recharge zone. The suit alleges that Fish and Wildlife Service designated far too little critical habitat to conserve the species. Read more... City protects 89 acres over the AquiferCity Council, on October 16th, approved the acquisition of a conservation easement on 83 acres of land located in the Edwards Contributing and Recharge Zones (see map). Read more about this land, and how it was protected. AGUA lawsuit forces EIS for highway over aquiferResponding to revelations from an AGUA lawsuit, the Federal Highway Administration withdrew its environmental clearance for the US 281 toll project in Bexar County. It is believed the move resulted from a TxDOT whistleblower's email showing a biologist at TxDOT hired her own husband to "fix" the environmental study for 281. Read more... 3rd Annual Tin-Foil Hat PartyAGUA's annual fundraiser featured the usual assortment of creative hats and great live music. More... AGUA intends to sue developer for taking Golden-cheeked warblersAGUA, along with 3 other organizations, has filed a Notice of Intent to Sue a developer for destroying endangered Golden-cheeked warbler habitat near Camp Bullis. Read about the action here. Council gives away impervious cover to developerCity Council voted June 20th to increase impervious cover from 30 to 42% on highly vulnerable recharge zone land. AGUA spoke against this case, advocating that the impervious cover remain at 30%. More... AGUA sues to halt toll roadAGUA and TURF have joined in filing a federal lawsuit asking that the US 281 toll road project be stopped pending full compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act. More... Council approves land acquisition to protect aquiferOn January 10, 2008, San Antonio City Council unanimously approved the purchase of development rights on 2,251 acres in Uvalde County as part of the Edwards Aquifer Land Acquisition program. More... Council votes down bus transit facility over aquiferOn December 6th, City Council voted against an annexation/rezoning that would have paved the way for a VIA Metro transit park over a sensitive area of the aquifer recharge zone. More... and more... Developer of huge subdivision denied water serviceSAWS board refused to provide water to the developers of an 1,800 acre subdivision that planned to dump treated sewage into beautiful San Geronimo Creek. Council rezones recharge land at 73% imperviousA rezoning will bring intense, high-impervious commercial development to vulnerable land near Loop 1604 and Hausman Road. More... Grass-roots groups get standing to contest SAWS expansionA judge granted legal standing to several citizens and environmental groups opposing SAWS' service area expansion far into sensitive areas of the Hill Country. More... TCEQ slaps wrist of developer who polluted Hamilton PoolTravis County officials are calling a small fine against the developer "ill advised". More... Citizens speak out on SAWS utility expansion over aquiferForty citizens spoke out at a meeting about SAWS' plan to extend its service area far into the Hill Country. Almost everyone in the audience expressed concerns with the planned expansion. Read more... Bexar Met finds contaminants in aquiferBexar Met Water District Hill Country reports that ethylbenzene and xylene were found in its drinking water supply in 2006. However, levels were well below the Maximum Contaminant Level set by the EPA. Recharge zone development scaled backDevelopers reduced the density of The Rim development after the Army expressed concerns that the project would hamper its operations at Camp Bullis. More... Council rezones Kyle-Seale ranchlandCity Council rezoned land over the aquifer recharge zone to allow high intensity commercial development, but imposed a 50% impervious cover limit. Grandfathering rejected in case that AGUA helped fight An appeals court has overturned a ruling which upheld a developer's grandfathering claim, and sent the case back to lower court. AGUA had filed a appeals court brief against the unfounded grandfathering claim. The developer was claiming to be exempt from drainage regulations, the tree ordinance, and all other development rules adopted in the last 25 years. īTil Your Well Runs DryHow the State of Texas Converted the Edwards Aquifer into a Multi-Million Dollar Commodity. An eye-opening report on the millions that private Edwards permit holders have spent lobbying the legislature. Read the report. EAA board rejects exemption from fuel tank rulesEdwards Aquifer Authority directors voted against a request by Methodist Stone Oak Hospital to construct a 4,440 gallon diesel storage tank over the aquifer recharge zone. More... Aquifer contamination lands Leon Valley on Superfund listCarcinogens found in wells around Leon Valley prompted the EPA to add that portion of the Edwards Aquifer to the Superfund list of critically contaminated sites. More... Ken Kramer: Increased pumping threatens progressState legislation to increase pumping from the aquifer will hurt endangered species and coastal economies. More... Carlos Guerra: Would setting higher pumping cap on Edwards hurt conservation?Funny, isn't it, that a Texas attorney general's opinion on Edwards Aquifer pumping rights was released Tuesday, the day the 80th Texas Legislature was convened. More... Aquifer system to limit pumping is ruled in errorThe impetus for lawmakers to increase the legal amount that can be drawn from the Edwards Aquifer got a boost Tuesday when Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott issued an opinion that the plan the Edwards Aquifer Authority created to limit that pumping is not legally authorized. More... Carlos Guerra: Worrying about water shortage while threatening source is absurdSan Antonio's peripheral development boom isn't only turning agricultural land into suburbs. It is also expanding demand for infrastructure and public services. More... Carlos Guerra: Latest aquifer pumping skirmish could lead to a major water warWatch out. The water wars are about to kick off again. More... Planning Commissioner neededThe City of San Antonio is currently seeking applicants to the San Antonio Planning Commission to fill a vacancy. More... Edwards pumping battle is revivedThose taking directly from aquifer want cap raised; those downstream seek tougher drought limits. More... Quihi citizens shift strategy on recharge zone quarryEnvironmentalists in Quihi have ended opposition to a recharge zone quarry, but are continuing to oppose a rail line through sensitive areas. Authority votes not to transfer pumping rights across creekWater marketer wanted to sell water to Kyle and a utility district. More... Texas water plan ignores global warming, scientist warnsClimate changes will raise temperatures, possibly cut rainfall, A&M professor says. More... Voters elect new Edwards Aquifer Authority board membersEdwards Aquifer Authority: Incumbent credits fourth victory to talk about recharge Council approves changes to PGA Resort dealIn an 8-3 vote, City Council gave a time extension and Edwards Aquifer water to developers of the PGA golf resort over the Edwards Aquifer. City Council rejects grandfathering claimThe City Council, taking a path that could lead to a court fight over environmental protection rules, denied a developer's grandfathering claim on a 1,700-acre aquifer recharge zone tract. More... AGUA lawsuit halts construction on highway over aquiferResponding to a lawsuit by AGUA, federal officials halted work on the U.S. 281 toll road pending results of an environmental assessment. More… AGUA exposes sewage leak over aquiferAn investigation by AGUA exposed a broken sewer line over the recharge zone that leaked raw sewage into the aquifer for a month. More... Injunction filed to stop 281 toll roadAGUA and People for Efficient Transportation, Inc. filed an injunction in federal court today asking that work on converting US 281 to a toll road be stopped. More... AGUA sues to stop toll road over recharge zoneAGUA and People for Efficient Transportation filed a lawsuit to stop expansions of U.S. 281 and Loop 1604 north of San Antonio. More... AGUA presses for stronger aquifer rulesAGUA announced its revisions to San Antonio's Aquifer Protection Ordinance and urged City Council to quickly adopt the needed protections. More... |
