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Conroe leaders consider wider moratorium and seek data as water demand nears capacity
Summary
City staff warned Conroe's water supply is under stress and council instructed staff to return with modeling and a concrete action plan; water production rose to nearly 17 million gallons per day compared with 15.4 million last April, and staff said projects under construction will only partially offset demand this year.
Conroe officials on April 23 asked staff for more modeling and a clear action plan after engineers and water production staff warned that demand and drought conditions have pushed the city close to regulatory capacity limits.
"This time last year in April we were producing 15,400,000 gallons a day. This time in April we're doing almost 17,000,000 gallons a day," Jason Miller, the city's water production staff member, told the council. "It's extremely dry right now. There's no end in sight as far as the drought goes. The forecast...look very grim."
City staff described multiple projects already under design or construction — Well 27 (online), Water Plant 29 (expected online in July), Water Plant 30 and Water Plant 32 and a bypass for Water Plant 15 — but said those additions will only partly reduce the shortfall this year. "All the projects I just described are gonna put a scratch on the surface of the situation," one staff member said. "So it's not a very big scratch." Council members pushed for more precise modeling showing pressure planes and seasonal forecasts and asked for a timeline of deliverables so they could determine whether a citywide moratorium on new connections or irrigation restrictions is necessary.
City attorneys and staff alerted the council to regulatory thresholds under the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Staff explained that when a system exceeds 85% of total groundwater capacity, the city must submit a drought contingency plan; TCEQ then reviews and may require further actions. "Once you go above the 85% capacity rule, they allow you a 90 day span to give them a plan," Miller said. "I don't know exactly when they start fining you. However, I think you're only gonna have a couple of swats on the hand before they start coming in and making you do something."
Council members expressed varying urgency: some said more time was needed to review modeling and to present a full action plan to the public and developers; others argued a citywide moratorium should be considered immediately to protect existing service. One council member described the situation as "very serious" and urged the council not to "kick the can down the road." Another said they would support a special meeting to review detailed grids, pressure planes and project timelines.
Council directed staff to assemble a more comprehensive presentation with modeled pressure planes and month-by-month forecasts for the summer and to schedule a special water briefing for council next week to review that data. Council members also discussed public notice and engagement steps should a moratorium or other mandatory restrictions be proposed.
Ending: Council scheduled follow-up briefings and directed staff to provide detailed modeling, timelines for projects coming online, and recommendations on whether a targeted or citywide moratorium is needed. The council set a near-term special meeting to review the data and take potential action.
