Brian Williams, general manager of the San Patricio Municipal Water District, told the Aransas Pass City Council on Nov. 11 the regional water system is facing a drought of record and that traditional surface-water supplies are deteriorating.

Williams said the district receives about 40 million gallons per day from the City of Corpus Christi — roughly 27 million gallons as raw water and about 13 million gallons treated — and that roughly 30% of the district’s sales go to municipal customers while about 70% go to industrial users. He described two long-term contracts with Corpus Christi: a treated-water contract extending through 2043 and an in-perpetuity raw-water contract.

Williams explained ‘‘firm yield’’ figures used by Corpus Christi planners and said long-term hydrology and declines in reservoir levels mean those historic yield numbers will be reduced. Using current consumption data and reservoir projections, he said modelers predict western-lake supplies could fall to near zero by about May 2027 and that November 2026 could mark a level‑1 emergency if dry conditions continue.

On allocation under severe shortages, Williams said Texas law requires pro rata reductions so all classes of customers share cuts, and that reductions could be applied evenly across municipal and industrial users rather than preserving a fixed 70/30 split under extreme curtailment.

To stretch municipal supplies, Williams described options the district is pursuing: drilling and testing brackish groundwater wells between Gregory and Ingleside with reverse‑osmosis treatment to supply industry and free municipal-treated water; pursuing water rights and possible purchase options in the Evangeline/Laguna area; and coordinating with Corpus Christi on larger desalination projects such as the La Quinta and the previously proposed Inner Harbor plant, while noting those larger projects are delayed and subject to permitting and engineering hurdles.

Williams addressed environmental concerns raised by residents about desalination discharge salinity, saying modeling for La Quinta suggests salinity changes would be small compared with natural daily variation in Corpus Christi Bay and that TCEQ review and hydrodynamic simulations are part of the permitting process.

Members of the public raised technical and policy questions during the presentation, including salinity monitoring and a suggestion about cloud seeding; Williams and councilors said cloud seeding is not an immediate local remedy and emphasized the district’s focus on diversifying supply and completing testing and permitting steps.

Williams concluded that the only cure for the drought is more rain but urged the council to consider short‑term supply options and to coordinate regionally as larger projects progress through engineering and permitting.