As Texas grapples with the demands of a swiftly expanding population, a state fund has made $1.28 billion available this year to support initiatives capable of providing water, even amid severe drought conditions.
However, the fund received requests from 23 eligible projects totaling $4.2 billion, leading to the rejection of 13 proposals—the first time in the 11-year history of the State Water Implementation Fund for Texas (SWIFT) that such denials have occurred.
This decision comes at an unfortunate moment for a state already facing a relentless drought and aging water infrastructure.
“This year, we are experiencing more demand than we have the capacity to meet,” stated Marvin Cole-Chaney, director of program administration and reporting for the Texas Water Development Board, which oversees the SWIFT fund.
Among the rejected projects is a proposed desalination plant that could generate 100 million gallons of drinking water daily in the Coastal Bend region of South Texas, which includes the drought-stricken city of Corpus Christi.
John Byrum, executive director of the Nueces River Authority, expressed surprise at the denial of the desalination project, which was intended as a vital water source for cities in the Coastal Bend.
Under the scoring criteria that determine priorities for SWIFT funding, the river authority’s desalination proposal ranked 11th. The top 10 projects will now move forward to submit more detailed applications for funding.
“We truly believed our project would score higher,” Byrum remarked, expressing his disappointment.
The Nueces River Authority sought $140 million to support the construction of a seawater desalination facility in Harbor Island, located near the cities of Aransas Pass and Port Aransas. This facility would treat seawater to make it suitable for drinking.
With federal permits secured in September, the proposed project is estimated to cost $3.2 billion and aims to supply water to municipalities, water districts, and businesses throughout South Texas, including Corpus Christi, which faces an impending water crisis. The coastal city, a major water supplier in the region, is on the brink of a crisis as its primary reservoirs have dwindled to under 8% capacity.
Corpus Christi has committed $2.7 million to the river authority to secure an option for purchasing 50 million gallons of water daily from the desalination plant once operational.
City officials are preparing for a Level 1 water emergency, indicating that the water supply could fall short of demand within 180 days, a situation that may arise as soon as September. Last week, Nueces County commissioners unanimously voted to declare a county-wide water emergency, imposing restrictions on outdoor watering for residents.
SWIFT provides low-interest loans with flexible repayment terms. Although the water development board indicated that the denied projects might qualify for alternative funding sources, such as the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, Byrum contends that the SWIFT fund should prioritize areas with acute water needs.
In evaluating projects, the water development board considers multiple factors and assigns scores on a sheet with a maximum of 86 points. Projects receive the highest points for serving large populations, while readiness and water conservation are also significant factors. However, a project’s “emergency need” carries minimal weight, with a maximum of just five points available.
None of the top ten projects received any points for “emergency need,” a designation reserved for public water systems anticipated to face supply shortages within 180 days, or those that have received federal funding to address an emergency.
Despite being positioned in an area with a critical water demand, the Harbor Island project did not earn emergency need points and lost potential points due to its location in rural Nueces County, which has a relatively small population. Its score of 62 was just one point shy of the 10th-ranked project.
This year’s top ten SWIFT projects are spread across the state, with the Riverbend Water Resources District receiving the highest score as it seeks $2.98 million to assess and enhance water infrastructure to accommodate Texarkana’s growing population.
The North Texas Municipal Water District has requested nearly $419 million for a pipeline and treatment facility in Leonard, Fannin County, and is also set to receive around $611 million for a new raw water pump station.
In South Texas, the Hidalgo County Drainage District has proposed a $120 million project for the Santa Cruz Reservoir.
Byrum indicated that the Nueces River Authority plans to apply for other funding programs provided by the water board and seek private financing to advance the Harbor Island desalination project.
SWIFT was established by the Texas Legislature and approved by voters in 2013, allowing a one-time transfer of $2 billion from the state’s rainy day fund. Over the next 50 years, starting in 2015, revenue bonds will finance approximately $27 billion in water supply projects through SWIFT.
To date, the water development board has allocated about $17.2 billion from SWIFT to 76 projects, estimating that this funding has saved entities nearly $2.1 billion over the life of the debt compared to market rates.
