Texas Water Resources Institute

Archive for September 2005

Radon Concern in the Hickory Aquifer

Graduate student assesses radionuclide problem
By Amanda Crawford
As the primary water source for Mason, Concho,McCulloch, San Saba,Menard, Kimble, and Gillespie counties in Central Texas, the threat of elevated radionuclide concentrations in the Hickory Aquifer’s groundwater poses health risks for residents in the area.
Radon is a natural, radioactive gas that may be found indoors in air or [...]

September 10th, 2005 | Posted in Uncategorized
Assessing Phosphorus Loss to Protect Surface Water

By Raul L. Garcia
The Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board (TSSWCB) in collaboration with the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences at Texas A&M University, Texas Cooperative Extension (TCE), Texas Water Resources Institute (TWRI), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), have developed a field validation of the Texas Phosphorus [...]

September 9th, 2005 | Posted in Uncategorized
Mexico Transfers Water to U.S.

New issues arise after partial water debt is paid
By Raul L. Garcia
Mexico released 210,785 acre-feet of water to Texas into Amistad International Reservoir on Saturday, March 19, 2005, to alleviate its sizable water debt to the U.S. arising from international treaty requirements. This delivery is an addition to the 56,750 acre-feet of water Mexico transferred [...]

September 1st, 2005 | Posted in Uncategorized
The Future of Desalination in Texas

Brine can transform water supplies in Texas communities
By Amanda Crawford
As Texas’ population grows, the ever-present threat of water shortages looms. However, technology is also advancing, providing possible solutions for water deficiencies. One such solution is desalination–a cost-effective method of producing potable and useable water from existing saltwater resources.
While desalination use has advanced along the Texas [...]

September 1st, 2005 | Posted in Uncategorized
Pond Scum

Researchers prepare a plan to use Riverside Campus ponds
By Amanda Crawford
Eight years ago, 10 ponds were built on the Texas A&M University Riverside Campus. But the agricultural program for which these ponds were intended moved away from that campus and the ponds were neither used nor maintained. Thomas DeWitt, assistant professor of ecological genetics with [...]

September 1st, 2005 | Posted in Uncategorized
Sediment Setback

Fort Hood’s sediment and erosion cause problems for the base
By Amanda Crawford
Since 1942, Fort Hood has been home to the U.S. Army’s III Mobile Armored Corps. It is the only U.S. military post able to station and train two armored divisions at once. At this base, troops execute weapons qualification tasks and tank gunnery training [...]

September 1st, 2005 | Posted in Uncategorized
Supporting Student Research

The Texas Water Resources Institute (TWRI) will fund 10 graduate student research projects for 2005-06 conducted by graduate students and researchers at Texas A&M University, Rice University, Texas A&M University Kingsville, Baylor, and the University of Texas at Austin.
Funded by TWRI through the U.S. Geological Survey as part of the National Institutes for Water Research [...]

September 1st, 2005 | Posted in Uncategorized
The Sky is Falling

Using cloud-seeding technology to produce rain
By Amanda Crawford
Because drought and water shortages are ever-present threats, many Texas Water Districts have constructed alternate methods of preserving, and now producing water. Cloud-seeding is one such solution.
Cloud-seeding introduces foreign particles into an unproductive cloud, enhancing the formation of water droplets. In simpler terms, it is a way to [...]

September 1st, 2005 | Posted in Uncategorized
Rainwater Harvesting

An Underutilized Conservation Project
By Amanda Crawford
Rainwater harvesting, a water collection practice used throughout the world for over 4,000 years, gives consumers access to an additional water source on their property. The collected rainwater is often used for landscape irrigation, but, with proper treatment, it can be used for drinking water.
Most people do not take advantage [...]

September 1st, 2005 | Posted in Uncategorized
Improving Stormwater Quality

By Raul L. Garcia
The City of Houston, Harris County, the Harris County Flood Control District and the Texas Department of Transportation have teamed up through a Joint Task Force (JTF) to address Houston’s stormwater pollution prevention efforts and requirements of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) stormwater permit program.
Background:
In 1998, the Environmental Protection Agency [...]

September 1st, 2005 | Posted in Uncategorized