LCRA outlines flood operations for Highland Lakes, says new peaker unit is online

Phil Wilson, an LCRA staff member, told the Lower Colorado River Authority board on Oct. 25 that the agency is actively managing flood operations in the Highland Lakes after recent heavy rainfall and catastrophic flooding in parts of the Hill Country.

Wilson said LCRA crews installed a mobile substation to restore electrical service after floodwaters from the Guadalupe River inundated the Hunt Substation in Kerr County. He described how the authority operates the Highland Lakes and how members of the public and emergency officials can track conditions and LCRA actions.

"These are ways people can find out when flood operations are happening at our dams," Wilson said, referring to the authority's HydroMet monitoring site and the LCRA Flood Operations Notification Service. He said LCRA's hydrologists and engineers monitor data from more than 275 river and weather gauges and use the authority's HydroMet site (hydromet.lcra.org) to inform operating decisions.

Wilson said Lake Travis is considered full at 681 feet above mean sea level (MSL) and that it has a flood pool that can extend up to 714 feet MSL, holding what he described as an additional 776,000 acre-feet of water. He added that if water in the Lake Travis flood pool reached 722 feet MSL — a level he said the authority has not previously reached — LCRA could release additional water as needed to protect the safety of Mansfield Dam.

Wilson also described public-facing tools LCRA updates during flood events: a flood operations report at floodstatuslcra.org, a river-operations report with lake levels updated every five minutes, and a free Flood Operations Notification Service that sends calls, texts or emails when floodgates are opened. He said LCRA sounds sirens before opening floodgates — five minutes before the first gate and one minute before each additional gate — and that the authority notifies local emergency officials, who decide on road closures or evacuations.

Kelly Payne, identified in the meeting as LCRA senior vice president of water operations, was listed by Wilson as the staff member who would provide a basin overview later in the agenda.

Wilson also announced that unit 1 of a natural gas–fired peaker plant in Caldwell County has reached commercial operation and that LCRA's participation in the ERCOT marketplace has been approved. He said the project includes two peaker units, each expected to supply up to 190 megawatts when both are online; unit 2 is scheduled for service in 2026. "This is a peaker plant," Wilson said, "which means it will not be providing power 24/7. Instead, it provides dispatchable power and will be in operation when demand approaches or surpasses the amount of power available from other sources."

Wilson also provided multi-year capital figures for dam- and hydroelectric-related projects along the Highland Lakes: $219,000,000 invested between fiscal 2010 and FY2025 and a planned $58,000,000 for FY2026–FY2030, figures he presented as ongoing efforts to update and modernize the dams and related infrastructure.

Chair Cooper, who opened the public portion of the meeting by calling on Wilson, offered brief remarks of appreciation for LCRA staff efforts during flooding and for the new generation unit.

The discussion at the board session was informational; no formal actions, votes, or directives were recorded on the items Wilson presented during the portion of the transcript provided. The board planned further updates from water operations staff later in the meeting.