PROJECTS
Our work spans a wide range of geographies and issues across Texas. View the projects below to catch a glimpse of all that we are up to. Each project includes a listing of relevant experts, publications, and resources.
Water Markets
Water markets are an important tool for ensuring efficient use of available water, including ensuring adequate water for the environment. Texas Living Waters is helping lead a statewide effort to center the environment as a critical user and potential beneficiary in the growing conversation around water markets in Texas.
Nature-Based Solutions
From absorbing flood waters to recharging aquifers to filtering waterways, Texas’ natural landscape is vital infrastructure. Texas Living Waters works at both state and local levels to ensure the protective power of nature is appropriately harnessed where communities most need it.
Supporting Water Justice
Long-term underinvestment in water infrastructure in communities of color and low-income communities continues to concentrate flood risk, water quality concerns, and water affordability burdens amongst those who have most faced historical injustice in Texas.
Infrastructure Investment
Texas’ aging water infrastructure is ill-equipped to deal with the mounting pressures of exponential growth and deepening climate extremes. Texas Living Waters is deeply engaged in the broad effort to update systems statewide. We advocate for underserved communities, ecosystem needs, and natural solutions where appropriate.
Water Loss in Texas
Texas water systems lose at least 572,000 acre-feet per year—about 51 gallons of water per service connection every day. That’s enough water to meet the total annual municipal needs of the cities of Austin, Fort Worth, El Paso, Laredo, and Lubbock combined. It’s a lot of water.
One Water in Texas
With deeper droughts and stronger floods threatening cities across the state, Texas Living Waters is helping communities integrate their water planning and management in a holistic, equitable manner that cares for the long-term water needs of communities and ecosystems.
Environmental Flows Protection
Texas is a state with a wealth of natural beauty, including a remarkable bounty of flowing streams and rivers and productive bays and estuaries along the coast. The health of those streams, rivers, and estuaries is at serious risk from flow depletion in the absence of effective flow protections.
Water Conservation Symposiums
Texas Living Waters is co-host to a variety of annual gatherings focused on providing utilities, agencies, non-profits and industry professionals with the latest data, research, and tools needed to improve water conservation efforts across the state.
Coastal Vulnerability & Adaptation
Sea level rise, expanding storm surge zones, and increasing land subsidence all increasingly threaten the diverse communities and ecosystems of Texas’ long Gulf Coast. Texas Living Waters seeks to center the needs of vulnerable communities and highlight the protective value of nature-based solutions in Texas’ ongoing era of adaptation.
Water Conservation
There is only so much ‘new’ water supply for Texas to find. In order to provide water for its growing population and strained ecosystems, Texas needs to further center water conservation in its longterm planning.
Regional Flood Planning
Texas faces increasing flood threats from heavier storms and rapid development. Texas Living Waters is working alongside regional flood planning groups to produce a state flood plan that protects all Texans and makes full use of the protective value of nature.
