Residents urge Manor to tighten wastewater limits and reconsider regional plant site near Wilburger Creek

Speakers at the March 19 public-comment period urged Manor officials to strengthen wastewater limits for city-run plants discharging to Wilburger Creek and recommended the city seek a different site for a proposed regional treatment plant.

Steve Butler, identified as a director with the Wilburger Creek Conservation Alliance, congratulated the city for adopting a wastewater master plan but asked officials to lower permitted phosphorus levels at Manor’s treatment plants. "All we need to do is to increase the amount of aluminum sulfate that the city is using currently," Butler said, referring to alum treatment that helps bind particulates and reduce algae-causing nutrients. He asked the city to reduce an existing phosphorus limit he described as "1 milligram per liter" to 0.1 milligrams per liter and pointed to Liberty Hill as a nearby example that had reached 0.02 mg/L.

Another speaker who identified themselves only during comment called on the council to reconsider a regional wastewater plant site on city-owned land that the speaker said is surrounded by perpetual conservation easements. The commenter said the conserved land — a roughly 2,000-acre area along Wilburger Creek — has high public and ecological value and compared it to regional parklands including Decker Lake, Barton Springs and Zilker Park. They argued the cheapest location for a plant may not be the best choice when factoring flood risk and future water reuse costs.

A third commenter, identified as Anne, said Manor has not always been included in bond-planning conversations and urged the council to work with Travis County to protect the land for a potential Wilburger Creek Greenway. Anne said county bond voters approved "well over $200,000,000 for parks and open space" and that county officials designated roughly half of those funds for the East Side — an amount she described as approximately $100 million earmarked for the Wilburger Creek Greenway.

Council members did not take formal action during public comment. Staff and councilors briefly acknowledged the comments; several council members and staff later discussed the plant location among other agenda items. No ordinance or resolution on phosphorus limits or plant siting was introduced at the March 19 meeting.

Why it matters Wilburger Creek was described by commenters as a significant local natural area whose ecological health could be affected by wastewater discharges. Requests raised three practical points that staff and council would need to evaluate: whether Manor’s discharge permits and plant operations can be made stricter than current permit limits, whether alum dosing should be increased at certain plants, and whether alternative sites outside conserved easements would reduce flood and reuse costs.

What remains unresolved Commenters called for the city to coordinate with Travis County on park and land-use planning and asked staff to re-evaluate siting decisions for regional infrastructure. Councilors asked staff questions but took no formal direction recorded in the minutes; any regulatory changes would require staff analysis, engineering input and, if necessary, permitting action.