The mission of the District is to control
land subsidence and manage groundwater resources through regulation,
conservation, and coordination with suppliers of alternative water sources to
assure an adequate quantity and quality of water for the future.
The District performs the following
activities directed toward fulfilling this mission by:
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Technical
research, measurements, and studies to determine and project the extent of
subsidence and available groundwater supplies.
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Preparation of
regulatory and management plans based on current, technically sound
information.
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Issuance of
permits to withdraw groundwater for beneficial uses in amounts that are not detrimental to the aquifer system.
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Pursuit of
enforcement actions, when needed, to achieve the objectives of the District.
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Participating
with other local and state entities to achieve the District's goals
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Assessment of
permit fees as a regulatory tool.
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Cooperation with
neighboring groundwater districts, governmental entities, and surface water
suppliers to assure that adequate supplies of water are available for future
use.
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Providing the
public with access to information about groundwater withdrawal, subsidence,
conservation, and actions of the District.
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Administration
and operation of the District in a fair, equitable, and responsible manner to
the benefit of all interests in the District.
History
The Fort Bend Subsidence District was
created by the Texas Legislature in 1989 as a conservation and reclamation
district (Act of May 26, 1989, 71st Leg., R.S., ch.
1045, 1989 Tex. Gen. Laws 4251). The District's purpose is to provide for
the regulation of the withdrawal of groundwater within the District to prevent
subsidence that contributes to flooding, inundation or overflow of areas within
the District, including rising waters resulting from storms or hurricanes, The District's boundaries are defined as all the
territory within
Although Fort Bend county had experienced
only small amounts of subsidence prior to the 1980's several characteristics of
the area raise concern about the potential for increasing subsidence in the
future:
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Rapid growth
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Water supply
dependent almost entirely on groundwater
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Proximity to
significant water-level declines in
Currently, total water use in the District
is comprised of 60% groundwater and 40% surface water; the surface water,
however, is primarily used for manufacturing and agricultural uses. The
District was formed to address measured impacts from the predominant use of
groundwater. In addition to the moderate, but noticeable, amounts of
subsidence, the heavy dependence of groundwater has resulted in declining water
levels in wells in the aquifers. Groundwater levels in wells drawing from
the Chicot and Evangeline Aquifers in the eastern part of the District have
declined in excess of of 150 feet from 1943 to
1977. These declines have resulted in increased operational costs to well
users.
The District regularly analyzes the adequacy
of previous District policies to meet its enabling legislation. The
District's Groundwater Management Plan provides background planning
information, descriptions of current groundwater regulatory practices and programs,
and an overview of District administrative operations. That Document
should assist the District's regulated community and the Texas Water
Development Board (TWDB) in understanding the historical direction and proposed
future objectives of the District.