A judge has granted standing for protestants seeking to halt the city of Corpus Christi’s Evangeline groundwater project, a decision that opens the door for multiple contested case hearings — a process that could potentially tie up permits for years.
The city of Sinton, St. Paul Water Supply Corp. and area farm-operator Charles Ring have each voiced concern that the Evangeline well field could potentially lead to drawdown of water and degrade the water quality of their surrounding wells, relied upon as municipal supply and as livelihood.
Administrative Law Judge Alicia Franklin York, who oversaw the April 28 preliminary hearing, noted in her written ruling that determination of standing is made by evaluating “whether the evidence demonstrates a reasonable probable injury sufficient to establish standing, not whether the alleged impacts have been conclusively proven.”
It’s not the outcome city of Corpus Christi officials had hoped for. The proposed well field, spanning a property of about 23,000 acres north of Sinton, has been considered a critical component in work to build water supply and stave off the potential for a water emergency.
The judge’s ruling “does not mean that the project ultimately does not get permitted,” wrote City Manager Peter Zanoni in a May 15 message to the City Council.
“It means the Judge thinks the protestants should have their (concerns) heard in court through a contested case hearing process,” he wrote.
Although the Evangeline groundwater project has already secured a production permit, the two permits that will likely go to a contested case hearing — a drilling permit and transport permit — are necessary to bring the endeavor to fruition.
Corpus Christi officials have said in the past that they were optimistic the city would ultimately win in a contested case hearing, if one proceeded.
The question was more about time.
Staff members have said in the past that they believe the mitigation measures that had been on the table would address concerns of area well owners, and that the city has relied on experts to help guide their decisions.
The determination of protestants’ standing will mean that the Corpus Christi City Council may have another decision that must be made in the near future: whether to continue pursuit of the well field that had carried a promise of pumping as much as 24 million gallons of groundwater per day.
The ruling was a “possible outcome that we have discussed and discussed with the City Council,” Zanoni wrote in a message to the Caller-Times.
“We now will further evaluate our options at this point that include going through a contested case hearing and continuing the construction work for the groundwater project at the Welder Ranch site,” he wrote.
The written ruling
In her nine-page written ruling, York recommends that the San Patricio County Groundwater District grant contested case hearings to Sinton, St. Paul and Ring for the transport permits, and Sinton and St. Paul for the drilling permits.
A preliminary hearing for an additional protest by Ring on the drilling permits may be scheduled for June, according to the document, shown as signed May 14.
Attorneys representing the project developers had in the hearing argued that the arguments by protestants were speculative and fell short in proving standing.
York, in explaining her decision, referenced an expert who had testified that Sinton and St. Paul, both of which rely upon groundwater, were likely to experience negative impacts on the water level and water quality from their wells, and that it was “reasonably probable” that the area could experience subsidence.
Ring, who operates RB Farms and Ring Bros. Farm & Seed, had cited drawdown maps from a hydrogeologist’s memo that showed his well could drop by 10 to 20 feet under a five-year projection, York wrote.
The project
Although the City Council approved spending as much as $169 million in groundwater rights from the Evangeline property, the project does not technically belong to the city of Corpus Christi; its full acquisition, under contract, is contingent on developer Evangeline/Laguna LP attaining all needed permits.
However, the city has been actively working on the site, parallel to waiting for the additional permits.
More than 48,000 linear feet of water line was on site, in addition to 31 crew members, as of May 8, according to a memo penned by Nick Winkelmann, chief operating officer of Corpus Christi Water.
City officials had hoped to begin bringing the project online in phases, starting in November.
It was not immediately clear as of the afternoon of May 15 what the permitting issues would mean for a timeline on a potential water emergency — a condition triggered when the city’s water supply is expected to be within six months too little to meet demand.
The most recently publicized projections put timeframe as beginning in September. However, new projections incorporating recent rainfall events are expected to be shown to the City Council on May 19.
Kirsten Crow covers city government and water news. Have a story idea? Contact her at kirsten.crow@caller.com.
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This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Judge recommends contested case hearings in groundwater project
Reporting by Kirsten Crow, Corpus Christi Caller Times / Corpus Christi Caller Times
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