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| | ABOUT
US
Click on one of the following topics to learn more about the District.
History
The District, formerly called the Colorado Valley Groundwater Conservation District, was created in accordance with Section 59 of Article XVI of the Texas Constitution and in accordance with Chapter 36 of the Texas Water Code and by an Act of the Legislature of the State of Texas, meeting in Regular Session in 2001 as the 77th Legislature, said Act being Chapter 302 of the General and Special Laws of the State of Texas, 77th Legislature (2001), Regular Session, said Act being effective September 1, 2001, said Act (Chapter 302) also being known as Texas House Bill 1081, as amended by House Bill 535, 78th Legislature (2003), Regular Session.
The boundaries of the District are the same as, congruent with and coextensive with the boundaries of Fayette County, Texas, as stated in Section 3 of House Bill 1081, enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas, meeting in Regular Session in 2001 as the 77th Legislature, and passed by the Texas House of Representatives on March 29, 2001 and by the Texas Senate on May 10, 2001, and signed by the Governor of the State of Texas on May 23, 2001.
Fayette County, 936 square miles in area, is in the Gulf Coastal Plain in east-central Texas. Bordering counties are: Bastrop, on the northwest; Lee, Washington and Austin on the north and northeast; Colorado on the east-southeast; and Lavaca and Gonzales on the south and southwest. La Grange, the county seat, is near the center of the county on U.S. Highway 77 and State Highway 71, about 60 miles southeast of Austin and 100 miles west of Houston.
Pictured above are members of the first permanent Board of Directors of the Fayette County Groundwater Conservation District, as they were being sworn in by Fayette County Judge Ed Janecka. From left to right are County Judge Ed Janecka, Carl Wendler, Paul Kohlleppel, Rodney Willis, Clay Rightmer, and Martin Manuel.
Board
of Directors
The Board was created to determine policy and regulate the withdrawal of groundwater within the boundaries of the District for the purposes of conserving, preserving, protecting and recharging the groundwater within the District, and for the purpose of preventing waste of the groundwater within the District, and to exercise its rights, powers, and duties in a way that will effectively and expeditiously accomplish the purposes of the District Act and of Chapter 36, Water Code, as amended, and of Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution. The Board's responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the adoption and enforcement of reasonable rules and other orders.
The Board of Directors is elected by the people within their Directors precincts, under the general Election laws of Texas.
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Office
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Name
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Precinct
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Term
Ends
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President
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L.J.
Calley
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2
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December
2010
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Vice-President
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Leo Kainer
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4
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December
2010
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Secretary/Treasurer
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Leo J. Wick, Sr.
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At
Large
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December
2010
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Director
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Robert Leer |
1 |
December 2013 |
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Director
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Charles Richter |
3 |
December 2013 |
 Pictured above
(from left to right ) at the January 5, 2009 Swearing In Ceremony are
Fayette County Groundwater Conservation District President/Director Precinct 2 L. J. Calley,
Vice President/Director Precinct 4 Leo Kainer, Sec.-Treasurer/At-Large Director Leo J. Wick, Sr.,
Precinct 1 Director Robert Leer and Precinct 3 Director Charles Richter.
Staff
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 |
| DAVID A. VAN DRESAR |
WENDI A. PYLE |
| General Manager |
Administrative Assistant |
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The Board of Directors hired David Van Dresar as the District's General Manager
effective October 30, 2006. Mr. Van Dresar comes to the District with extensive
experience within the Water Utilities industry. Mr. Van Dresar has been
appointed by Governor Rick Perry to the Drought Preparedness Council as the
representative for the Texas Alliance of Groundwater Districts. He also
represents Fayette County on Region K State Water Planning Group.
The function of a General Manager is to manage and conduct the duties, business, and functions of the District, subject to orders, directions and control of the Board.
E-mail:
david@fayettecountygroundwater.com
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In
October 2008 the District
welcomed Wendi A. Pyle on staff as
the new Administrative Assistant. A
graduate of La Grange High School, Wendi spent 11 years at the Railroad
Commission in the Compliance Division in Austin. She will be happy to help you with
any questions or assist you with District business.
E-mail:
wendi@fayettecountygroundwater.com |
Location
The District Office is located in the new Fayette County Agricultural Building, 255
Svoboda Lane, Room 115, in La Grange, Texas.
Telephone: (979) 968-3135
Facsimile: (979) 968-3194
E-mail:
info@fayettecountygroundwater.com
Office
Hours
The District's regular office hours are Monday through Friday, from 8:00 a.m. until
4:00 p.m. The
telephone answering machine is monitored daily.
Frequently
Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can the district place a water meter on my well?
Domestic wells are specifically exempted from the permitting process and will
not require a meter.
Groundwater districts are primarily concerned with wells that are capable of pumping more than 25,000 gallons of groundwater a day.
In the near future, the Fayette County Groundwater Conservation District will begin monitoring water levels in the aquifers. To do this, the District will ask permission to
periodically read the water level in selected wells, entirely on a voluntary basis.
Can a district condemn property through the power of eminent domain? Yes, but only for purposes of activities such as building a dam, constructing pipelines, or installing equipment to recharge a groundwater reservoir. A groundwater
district cannot condemn property for the purpose of acquiring rights to groundwater, surface water or water rights.
Can a district prevent me from drilling a well on my property?
In general, the district cannot prevent you from drilling one well on your property.
If the well is not for domestic use, the well may have to be permitted, and a production limit may be set.
Can a district limit the amount of groundwater I can pump?
Yes. Depending on the type of well, a local district can limit production of permitted wells based on acreage or limit the maximum amount of water produced. However, a
district cannot limit production on exempt
wells, with the possible exception
being under drought conditions.
Can a district prevent me from selling water from my property? No, it cannot prevent you from selling the water, but it could limit the amount of water you pump to sell.
The district can limit the amount of water you pump based on the land area under your control.
A district can impose an export fee if the water is being sold and taken out of the service area.
Why is there a 5 acre minimum tract size requirement in
the Rules?
The District has set spacing requirements, including a 5 acre minimum tract
size, in order to help insure that no new well is drilled that will cause
interference with the production of existing neighboring wells.
Please see Wells and
Groundwater to learn more about how wells work, and the "cone of
depression" they form. The objective of this rule is to keep the cone
of depression formed by your well within the physical boundaries of your
property.
For more details on these and other questions, please see the
Texas Cooperative Extension publication B-6120, "Questions About
Groundwater Conservation Districts in Texas".
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