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PSA - Help Save Jacobs Well, The Blue Hole and The Blanco River

2,990 Views | 41 Replies | Last: 3 days ago by Gunny456
Randymarsh1
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9:37p, 8/7/25
AG
I'm not sure why this is not gaining more attention than it is so I figured starting here couldn't hurt. Recently Abbot vetoed bill 1253 that would give locals more power to manage groundwater in the rapidly depleting Trinity Aquifer, the lifeblood of iconic swimming holes Jacob's Well and Blue Hole, Cypress Creek and the Blanco River.

A short summary, the groundwater district can't impose taxes or production fees, charges based on the amount of water pumped, like the vast majority of local groundwater districts. A bipartisan effort to fix the groundwater district took shape during the 140-day legislative session that ended in early June. The basic goal: Give the district the same kinds of regulatory powers the other 97 districts in the state have. In Hays County, almost every elected officialRepublican and Democratsupported beefing up the groundwater district. Every Hays County commissioner, including both Republican commissioners, who represent Wimberley and Dripping Springs, supported the bill, as did the mayors of Wimberley and Woodcreek. Senator Charles Perry, a Lubbock Republican who is the primary gatekeeper for water policy in the upper chamber. In late April, Perry passed legislation strengthening the HTGCD on a 310 vote. Abbot's veto of the bill boils down to big corporations/developers removing hurdles to private developments in the area which will only accelerate the draining of the already depleted aquifer.

Please help save and protect water in the hill country.

https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/jacobs-well-texas-greg-abbott-veto/

https://www.change.org/p/protect-jacob-s-well-before-it-disappears-forever

I live on cypress creek and swim in its beautiful waters everyday. I can tell you when aqua Texas pumps and when they don't. I know that might seem crazy, but this ecosystem is so fragile and depleted I can see it with my own eyes and have gauge data from Jacob's well that confirms my boots on the ground observations.
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Mville Ag
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10:10p, 8/7/25
AG
Wimberley resident here. Apologies, I'm not up to speed on the legislation. So the bipartisan support is for control thru monitoring and taxes the amount of water consumed on private water wells?
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alvtimes
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11:13p, 8/7/25
Man I hate that for you guys down there….. the developers and water companies dont seem to give a spit…… but now that its been vetoed seems too late to me ……. time to raise hell was long ago.! Good luck going forward…… vast stretches of Texas will soon be in the same boat when 1000 acre ranches are sold off to developers and 1000 1 acre tracts can shoot a well down.
Im a big proponent of leaving landowners alone…. but maybe my mindset needs to shift a bit.
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BrazosDog02
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11:18p, 8/7/25
AG
Too little too late. Better figure out how to get folks to go back to where they came from or it's going to be Jacob's Cave before long. I don't think anyone has a real idea of the magnitude and seriousness of the water situation. When they do, it will be far too late. Where I am in the hill country, over the last few years, I know of 1,000 acres that has been sold to tiny lots with thousands and thousands of homes. That's just in a few mile radius. That's going on everywhere. Folks pour in from everywhere. They can't build fast enough. The resources cant support this.

Droughts and over use….only way to fix it now is let it go dry and let the situation right itself.
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Gunny456
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In reply to Randymarsh1 • 12:21a, 8/8/25
AG
I had the privilege to scuba dive in Jacob's Well in the early 70's before they closed it. Beautiful place and so unique. The damage was done decades ago with all the development.
I can remember going to an "assembly" at our high school in 1968 and a guy with USGS gave a presentation of how someday water would be more valuable than oil.
I remember we all laughed when he said in 50 years people would be buying water in little plastic bottles for over $1 each. We thought he was looney.
The amount of water that humans have wasted over the years is mind boggling.
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BrazosDog02
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In reply to Gunny456 • 12:29a, 8/8/25
AG
Where I lie in the hill country, the native crap that grows and survives Ian Mesquite, *****ly pear, tasajillo, and other crap that has thorns and lives in the desert. Yet, I can drive any given direction for 45 minutes and find lush green yards, watered multiple times a week, water running down the steeet. Personally, I think that should be outright illegal or heavily and frequently fined….like hundreds of dollars a month. Make it hurt. You want a green yard, you pay for it dearly. That seems to be the only thing people understand. A little pain in the pocketbook goes a long way. It enrages me. The hill country is shot in my opinion. It ain't what it was and it won't ever be again. Lots of folks in my county have reported drying springs and wells going dry or having to have pumps lowered. It's not good and no one seems to think much of it.

The only redeeming concept is that when the water runs out, and it will, people will leave in droves. It should self correct but it still won't be like it was.
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WestTexasAg
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12:33a, 8/8/25
AG
They have run out of water in Liberty Hill. Tons of development projects have been on hold about a year now.
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Gunny456
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In reply to BrazosDog02 • 12:37a, 8/8/25
AG
Think of the millions of gallons waisted per day across the U.S. just from people who let the water run in the sink while they brush their teeth. Or from car washes or golf courses,…..this list can go on and on.
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Gunny456
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In reply to BrazosDog02 • 12:48a, 8/8/25
AG
Yes sir. I was born and raised in the hill country and then had our ranch by Harper for 30 years to boot.
We had lots of cedar that we cleared and springs started running again that had not for years. Yet we had lots of neighbors that had wells quit… and creeks dry up and springs quit that don't even come back after heavy rains.
Too many straws sucking out of the one cup….
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BrazosDog02
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In reply to Gunny456 • 1:12a, 8/8/25
AG
I think I read the population could double in Texas by 2050. I think We could eradicate every cedar from this state and not make up for that. It's a real problem and no one seems to care that much. Out of sight, out of mind. As long as the water comes out when you turn on the knob, all is well. It's not a simple fix, and frankly, I don't know that there is a fix at all.
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Gunny456
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In reply to BrazosDog02 • 1:16a, 8/8/25
AG
Yes sir. You speak sound wisdom. It certainly is a bad problem as you say.
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cheeky
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2:05a, 8/8/25
AG
The price of land on water has become so astronomical in Texas that I find it hard to side with the landowners. Sell it, or don't. But you don't own the water flowing from the springs, rivers and lakes and nobody owes you the past or future availability or lack thereof. The nice roads and other civil infrastructure and benefits that you enjoy largely are paid for by the new developers/buyers. Can't have your cake and eat it, too. But we can all agree that the problem is getting worse as the population of Texas is irreversibly increasing by the year.
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Yesterday
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5:13a, 8/8/25
AG
Sucks but I don't see a stop to it. Millions of people wanting homes will outweigh most anything.
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Yesterday
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5:15a, 8/8/25
AG
I think the real issue is normalizing vast civilizations in places that don't have a lot of water. West of the Balconies fault line wasn't made to hold millions of people in a single county.
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Mas89
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7:23a, 8/8/25
AG
Have to wonder what percentage of the water is being used to irrigate golf courses in that entire region. And what impact a prolonged drought will eventually bring. I think it's the LCRA that cuts off irrigation to farm and ranch property but not golf courses.
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oldarmy76
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In reply to WestTexasAg • 8:09a, 8/8/25
This is primarily due to poor governance and utility planning/operations rather than some larger water shortage. The city took over the wsc and then wanted to expand into areas that others provided water to. Commitments were made to serve developments (in fact, many developers were pressured to use Liberty hill water instead of Gus or other water sources) before water supply was secured by Liberty hill to meet those commitments.

The city does have a water right to just about all the water they could ever use in lake Travis, they just don't have a way or have found a partner to help access it.

But yes, keeping green lawns in central Texas in summer is shameful. That is what drives almost all the water limitations.
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WheelinAg
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8:17a, 8/8/25
AG
Ever look at the surface rights viewer? I hadn't until we bought land on the Colorado River in Fayette County. Most of the rights east of the Balcones fault or 35 are for impounding water. Most of the ones west are for pulling water out of the Colorado or tributaries. It's interesting to see who uses the water around Austin.

https://www.arcgis.com/apps/mapviewer/index.html?webmap=77f839495d2d42e589ac998cb04010b7
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HTownAg98
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In reply to Yesterday • 8:23a, 8/8/25
Yesterday said:
Sucks but I don't see a stop to it. Millions of people wanting homes will outweigh most anything.

The only thing that can stop it is if a water district runs out of water and cannot sell any more taps. But we're already pumping water from east Texas into parts of Hays, Comal, and Bexar County. Yes, it's expensive, but people are willing to pay for it.
One of the easiest things to do to cut water usage is to get over this concept of a green lawn. It makes no sense in a semi-arid area.
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Gunny456
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In reply to cheeky • 9:04a, 8/8/25
AG
A landowner that bought land in the hill country back in the 80's or 90's paid lots of money for it in those days markets and economies. It's all relative. The landowner that took the risk and went into debt to buy a place and spends lots of $$$
improving the habitat and range and water resources on his land is not at fault for the market value going up. He just made a good investment with his money.
That would be like saying a guy who bought an old car in the 80's that is now worth a lot of money as a classic is at fault cause the car sells for a lot of money now at Barret Jackson.
Water rights were oftentimes sold with property and real estate along some public rivers and streams in Texas decades back, and those water rights were paid for by those landowners when they purchased that property the same as mineral rights were.
The landowner has the same Texas private property rights on owning the water on his land as he does the minerals….unless the water or waterway is deemed public property by it being a navigable stream or such.
I know lots of ranchers and landowners in the hill country that have literally spent thousands of dollars clearing cedar and other invasive brush species to enhance and reestablish groundwater and springs and creeks on their property.
You can't fault a guy for his property increasing in value.

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SanAntoneAg
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9:05a, 8/8/25
AG
Data centers use a lot of water. More are on the way.
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AgFan1974
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9:31a, 8/8/25
This issue is not one for the hill country alone. I am in Rockwall county (8 years now) and while the issue is likely decades behind the current state of the hill country, it is becoming more apparent.

I am not a water expert but what I do know is we have had water restrictions placed on us that were not an issue when we arrived. The water pressure in our neighborhood (1.5 acre ranchettes) is probably half what it was in 2015. I have sprinkler stations that will not even push all the heads up, it is silly. And yes, I acknowledge the irony in complaining about not being able to water the yard in the context of this discussion.

The flip side of that is HOA regulation. There are roughly 100 houses in this development and we are required to keep roughly 1 acre maintained. I have 26 stations on my system with 3-4 heads each. At 10-20 minutes at each station my cycle will run 4-6 hours. Every house is doing the same. If you decide to stop, you are gonna get those HOA letters and fines. You WILL have to re-sod your acre and it will cost you thousands to do it. No doubt a rock and a hard place.

There are hundreds (maybe thousands if you count what is going on in Forney) of homes and 10s of developments being built as I type within 10-15 miles of me.

I too believe this is a ticking time bomb but for the entire state before all said and done. With the explosion in population I am not convinced we have an answer.
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Gunny456
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9:43a, 8/8/25
AG
Add the water problem on top of the electricity problem and also habitat destruction for deer and such.
Big ole train coming down the track for sure.
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HTownAg98
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In reply to AgFan1974 • 10:34a, 8/8/25
AgFan1974 said:
This issue is not one for the hill country alone. I am in Rockwall county (8 years now) and while the issue is likely decades behind the current state of the hill country, it is becoming more apparent.

I am not a water expert but what I do know is we have had water restrictions placed on us that were not an issue when we arrived. The water pressure in our neighborhood (1.5 acre ranchettes) is probably half what it was in 2015. I have sprinkler stations that will not even push all the heads up, it is silly. And yes, I acknowledge the irony in complaining about not being able to water the yard in the context of this discussion.

The flip side of that is HOA regulation. There are roughly 100 houses in this development and we are required to keep roughly 1 acre maintained. I have 26 stations on my system with 3-4 heads each. At 10-20 minutes at each station my cycle will run 4-6 hours. Every house is doing the same. If you decide to stop, you are gonna get those HOA letters and fines. You WILL have to re-sod your acre and it will cost you thousands to do it. No doubt a rock and a hard place.

There are hundreds (maybe thousands if you count what is going on in Forney) of homes and 10s of developments being built as I type within 10-15 miles of me.

I too believe this is a ticking time bomb but for the entire state before all said and done. With the explosion in population I am not convinced we have an answer.

Thankfully, that power goes away on September 1.
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BrazosDog02
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In reply to SanAntoneAg • 10:48a, 8/8/25
AG
SanAntoneAg said:
Data centers use a lot of water. More are on the way.

"A lot"....

Large ones use 5 million gallons per day according to the google. Much of that is reused, and I don't know how that is metered, but suffice it to say that there is a large initial investment required with water no matter what.

They are a huge driver for this problem by way of not how they operate, but how they start the process that destroys the land and consumes resources.

If you are a city official of Povertyville, Tx, companies that own these data centers have eyes on you. They are courted by these officials because they will purchase thousands of acres for above market value. If you live in a **** hole, and a datacenter comes and offers you 3,000 per acre, any broke landowner will take that with a smile. To get going, data centers then get in bed with the city. They dump money into infrastructure, roads, electricity, power plants, distribution lines, etc in exchange for tax breaks. This all happens in the background. The citizens never really know about it unless they are involved. That infrastructure now makes it possible for the city to court developers who will come in and offer money for large acreages. The price of that land has now gone up a little, but its still cheap. Except, now there is water, electric and roads to support the extra population. It grows. Before long, that land worth 5,000 per acre is worth 40,000-60,000 per acre. All of a sudden these ranchers that would never sell their generational ranch because peepaw worked until his hands bled...well, they are liars....they sell...more development. More money, and it goes on. The new population is now paying taxes, but not enough because it was historically cheap and the city hasn't caught up, plus the big data centers aren't paying their share. So, taxes go up, ag exempt land is excessive in these areas, so these shanties old farmers live in are all of a sudden appraised at a million dollars and taxed accordingly. They can't afford that. They leave. Cycle complete, wash, repeat.

Before long, your quiet, nice, rural farm and ranch community is the fastest growing county in the United States over run with transplants who want 400 security lights on their house because the dark is scary and complaining about coyotes eating their cats and the fact there aren't enough nail salons or fried chicken places near them.

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Corps_Ag12
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In reply to HTownAg98 • 10:54a, 8/8/25
AG
HTownAg98 said:
AgFan1974 said:
This issue is not one for the hill country alone. I am in Rockwall county (8 years now) and while the issue is likely decades behind the current state of the hill country, it is becoming more apparent.

I am not a water expert but what I do know is we have had water restrictions placed on us that were not an issue when we arrived. The water pressure in our neighborhood (1.5 acre ranchettes) is probably half what it was in 2015. I have sprinkler stations that will not even push all the heads up, it is silly. And yes, I acknowledge the irony in complaining about not being able to water the yard in the context of this discussion.

The flip side of that is HOA regulation. There are roughly 100 houses in this development and we are required to keep roughly 1 acre maintained. I have 26 stations on my system with 3-4 heads each. At 10-20 minutes at each station my cycle will run 4-6 hours. Every house is doing the same. If you decide to stop, you are gonna get those HOA letters and fines. You WILL have to re-sod your acre and it will cost you thousands to do it. No doubt a rock and a hard place.

There are hundreds (maybe thousands if you count what is going on in Forney) of homes and 10s of developments being built as I type within 10-15 miles of me.

I too believe this is a ticking time bomb but for the entire state before all said and done. With the explosion in population I am not convinced we have an answer.

Thankfully, that power goes away on September 1.


Can you elaborate on this?
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AgFan1974
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In reply to HTownAg98 • 11:02a, 8/8/25
HTownAg98 said:
AgFan1974 said:
This issue is not one for the hill country alone. I am in Rockwall county (8 years now) and while the issue is likely decades behind the current state of the hill country, it is becoming more apparent.

I am not a water expert but what I do know is we have had water restrictions placed on us that were not an issue when we arrived. The water pressure in our neighborhood (1.5 acre ranchettes) is probably half what it was in 2015. I have sprinkler stations that will not even push all the heads up, it is silly. And yes, I acknowledge the irony in complaining about not being able to water the yard in the context of this discussion.

The flip side of that is HOA regulation. There are roughly 100 houses in this development and we are required to keep roughly 1 acre maintained. I have 26 stations on my system with 3-4 heads each. At 10-20 minutes at each station my cycle will run 4-6 hours. Every house is doing the same. If you decide to stop, you are gonna get those HOA letters and fines. You WILL have to re-sod your acre and it will cost you thousands to do it. No doubt a rock and a hard place.

There are hundreds (maybe thousands if you count what is going on in Forney) of homes and 10s of developments being built as I type within 10-15 miles of me.

I too believe this is a ticking time bomb but for the entire state before all said and done. With the explosion in population I am not convinced we have an answer.

Thankfully, that power goes away on September 1.

Does it? A quick look tells me the fines may be capped (or prohibited during restriction periods) but they can still require you to replace dead sod. Some protection but it doesnt give landowners freedom to let there lawn go to dust (which most do not want anway).

Probably a better thread for this please advise if so.
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Gunny456
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In reply to BrazosDog02 • 12:04p, 8/8/25
AG
Well said again brother. Good post.
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schmellba99
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In reply to BrazosDog02 • 12:12p, 8/8/25
AG
BrazosDog02 said:
Where I lie in the hill country, the native crap that grows and survives Ian Mesquite, *****ly pear, tasajillo, and other crap that has thorns and lives in the desert. Yet, I can drive any given direction for 45 minutes and find lush green yards, watered multiple times a week, water running down the steeet. Personally, I think that should be outright illegal or heavily and frequently fined….like hundreds of dollars a month. Make it hurt. You want a green yard, you pay for it dearly. That seems to be the only thing people understand. A little pain in the pocketbook goes a long way. It enrages me. The hill country is shot in my opinion. It ain't what it was and it won't ever be again. Lots of folks in my county have reported drying springs and wells going dry or having to have pumps lowered. It's not good and no one seems to think much of it.

The only redeeming concept is that when the water runs out, and it will, people will leave in droves. It should self correct but it still won't be like it was.

You also have juniper trees out the ying-yang that aren't controlled that suck up an amazingly large amount of water.
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Junction71
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2:30p, 8/8/25
AG
The city of Junction shut down a site (90 lots I believe) on the north Llano River because of water. Refused to sell them water.
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MouthBQ98
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2:43p, 8/8/25
AG
Don't plant non-native or non drought tolerant grasses or ground cover. I haven't watered my lawn in 9 years, not once. In the summer it goes somewhat yellow and brown tint like it should with no rain and severe heat, but the runners and roots survive. Any rain, and it goes back green and stars growing again within a day or two. Sure, it doesn't look like a golf course green BUT it is very functional and low maintenance and has basically zero water demand.

I don't eee what is so hard about this except HOA's and lawn fanatics conditioned to year round lush green tract home turf lawns won't change until the water issue gets real and gets extremely expensive.
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schwack schwack
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5:01p, 8/8/25
AG
East Texas now fighting a Dallas investor that wants to drill & sell under the acres he bought out here. Our Rep Cody Harris has a good article from the Houston Chronicle. I'd link, but I'm not a subscriber. You can probably see it on his fb page. https://www.facebook.com/CodyforTexas
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cheeky
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In reply to Gunny456 • 5:36p, 8/8/25
AG
Gunny456 said:
A landowner that bought land in the hill country back in the 80's or 90's paid lots of money for it in those days markets and economies. It's all relative. The landowner that took the risk and went into debt to buy a place and spends lots of $$$
improving the habitat and range and water resources on his land is not at fault for the market value going up. He just made a good investment with his money.
That would be like saying a guy who bought an old car in the 80's that is now worth a lot of money as a classic is at fault cause the car sells for a lot of money now at Barret Jackson.
Water rights were oftentimes sold with property and real estate along some public rivers and streams in Texas decades back, and those water rights were paid for by those landowners when they purchased that property the same as mineral rights were.
The landowner has the same Texas private property rights on owning the water on his land as he does the minerals….unless the water or waterway is deemed public property by it being a navigable stream or such.
I know lots of ranchers and landowners in the hill country that have literally spent thousands of dollars clearing cedar and other invasive brush species to enhance and reestablish groundwater and springs and creeks on their property.
You can't fault a guy for his property increasing in value.


Not disagreeing necessarily, but my parents bought around 400-500 acres near but not on the Llano River in Mason County in the early 90s and paid $200/acre. Today that would cost in the millions. Land was cheap. No longer cheap or affordable for most.
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Gunny456
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In reply to cheeky • 6:21p, 8/8/25
AG
That would have been a tremendous price in the 90's in Mason County for good ground….as land around Ozona or Sonora was the only land we looked at in Texas that was that cheap in the early 90's. We diligently looked for land in 1991 in Mason County and found nothing worth buying for under $1500-1600/acre. Llano county was around 1800-2000. West Kimble county about $1000.00.
Raw undeveloped land was cheaper in Kimble county where we ended up buying…but not much.
Sold the ranch in 2020. In 30 years the raw land price was about three times more than what we had paid.
MSRP on a Ford F250 4WD XLT Crew Cab in 1991 was about $24,000. That same truck today is easily four times that.
A 26' Regulator Center Console full rigged with twin Yamaha's in 1991 was around $79,000. Today the same boat is around $320,000…again about 4 times as much.

It's all relative….and the hill country is the most sought after recreational and rural land in Texas….supply vs. demand.
God isn't making anymore land. It's only going to continue to go up.
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CS78
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7:12p, 8/8/25
Eminent domain for more reservoirs sucks but the sooner the better.

Make it illegal for HOAs to enforce lawn violations. Nothing pisses me off more than the water district sending threatening letters about not watering while at the same time getting threatening letters from an HOA about a dead lawn.
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Gunny456
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In reply to CS78 • 7:34p, 8/8/25
AG
There has been quite a few reservoirs proposed and planned that were abandoned when the cost of buying the property was found to be prohibitive even under eminent domain.
The cost has to be paid for somehow. The tax payer will be on the cuff for that bill.
I've heard discussions from water districts about implementing a "water tax" on county residents based upon property taxes as a way of obtaining funds for reservoir construction.
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