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Hays-Belterra WCID, the Water Control and Improvement District for the
Belterra subdivision, has applied for a TCEQ Permit to discharge
treated sewage effluent directly into Bear Creek. This is unprecedented
in our area because the creeks and streams directly recharge our two
major aquifers, the Trinity and Edwards, the sole water source for tens
of thousands in this area. For those of us on wells in the area, this
is a direct threat to our health and our home values. For those living
along Bear Creek, it is also a real threat to their quality of life,
since many of them swim and recreate in the creek and will no longer be
able to do so safely. If this permit is approved, the precedent will be
established and untold numbers of developers will undoubtedly try to
Permit their wastewater plant discharge into creeks throughout the Hill
Country.
There are other effluent handling methods available, such as re-use and
irrigation, which is what Belterra originally espoused in their initial
plans. They are apparently seeking this Permit in order to increase
treatment capacity as well as increase the build-out of their 290W
holdings. Please understand that once the Belterra WCID has this Permit
and moves forward, the California-based real estate company pushing for
this, Capital-Pacific Holdings, Inc., will someday be gone and likely
no longer involved with the comings and goings of this WCID.
The link below is a PDF version of the Belterra flier that is formatted to print in large scale.
A door-to-door effort was made on Saturday April 1 to inform Belterra residents of the concerns of downstream residents.
http://friendshipalliance.org/pdfs/belterradischarge.pdf
Last updated on Monday, April 3, 2006 by billc