SALADO, Texas (KXXV) — The potential for millions of gallons of treated wastewater heading to Salado Creek daily has many Bell County neighbors on high alert.
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Voices from the creek
Richard Thomas and his wife Linda Griffith have been married for 45 years and continue to build a life together in Salado.
“We have used this water to raise our son. His bottle was right from this creek. We’ve had artists down here and poets and baptisms and weddings and people picnicking and celebrating, would that happen if this was a foot thick in algae bloom? Not a chance” said Linda Griffith.
Linda is with the local advocacy group Save Salado Creek and she reached out to us to share their efforts to protect the creek.
25News Bobby Poitevint is taking a deeper dive into the creek to explore resident concerns and how entities such as developers and state officials are responding.
While at the creek, 25News Bobby Poitevint ran into Jeff Taylor, business owner, father and husband, who said he relaxes after his morning workout in the creek.
“I come down here and usually strip down and jump in right here where the water comes out the ground, super refreshing and listen to the church bells go off about 9:00. It’s peaceful, reset with nature and listen in the water. I love it," he said.
Bobby asked, “but I wanna ask, if this stared maybe getting a lot more algae in it or started to not look so clear would this still be part of your routine?"
He responded, “No, not at all."
Salado Creek and its assets
There are a dozen wastewater treatment plants residents are worried about. Of the dozen, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality is reviewing seven new or renewal permits and five of the dozen have already been approved or renewed.
Many of those plants would or currently support new housing developments as the need for housing in Central Texas continues to grow North of the City of Austin.
The Save Salado Creek group and other neighbors worry, if all twelve permits exist as is, so close together the water could lose its beauty, fill with algae, contaminate drinking water, endanger the wildlife who call this creek home —such as the Salado Salamander — and ultimately hurt tourism and the village’s economy; as the village has many businesses, lodging options, and a variety of events are hosted each year near the creek.
The chemical left behind in treated wastewater that neighbors are worried about is phosphorus.
Phosphorus is a mineral and chemical element that can naturally be found in waterways and causes algae growth but activists worry an excess amount can overcrowd the creek, harm its aesthetic, and possibly produce harm toxic algae. Activists say they have seen this happen in our parts of the state.
The creek sits over the Edward’s Aquifer recharge zone which provides drinking water for millions of people in Central Texas. It's also home to the federally threatened Salado Salamander.
With the dozen treatment plants combined the TCEQ would allow up to 8-million gallons of treated wastewater to potentially be discarded into the creek each day. Neighbors and activists have questioned whether a permit for irrigation would be better and should be more utilized than permits for discharge.
"If we can change legislation and lower the excepted level of chemicals that can go into this creek — Not to stop development. We don’t want that. In a perfect world, would be to work as a partner with the developer. We’re gonna fight it — Thanks for doing this, ” said Linda.
A developer's point-of-view
Chris Wren is President of Treat Oak Developers which currently holds one of the seven applications under review by the TCEQ. That permit is known as Salado Creek Meadows and would be allowed to discharge an amount not to exceed 975,000 gallons per day.
Wren accepted an initial interview request then later declined, but provided these answers to questions via email.
In short - he said most new housing developments have to secure water sources before a project is even "viable" and "that all sewer plants are highly regulated, monitored and managed by licensed operators."
He added, the proposed discharge amounts in permits are there for padding for potential future development. He suggests that treatment plants will never discharge the amounts listed in the applications and uses basic mathematics involving housing units to support this theory.
When noting irrigation systems as a solution, Wren mentions that no plant, to his knowledge, uses irrigation systems for sewer discharge fully and said irrigation systems can be costly thus impacting home prices.
Wren questions should neighbors raise more concern with aging treatment plants, private sewer systems and wonders if these latest concerns are residents not wanting new development in their backyard.
You can read his full statements below:
"There is obviously more demand for housing outside of Georgetown and north Austin. Affordable housing continues to expand outside city limits and into rural counties. Most of these developments first have to secure water before the developments are viable projects. Then for every gallon of water that a development discharges in treated sewer effluent, the development needs a gallon of potable water. So if a development only secures 100,000 gallons of water per day, the max they could discharge would be 100,000 gallons. Overtime developments can get more water and therefore create more sewer demand too.
Per our conversation, it's important to point out that all sewer plants are highly regulated, monitored and managed by licensed operators. The new sewer plants are even better than the old, outdated and in some cases dilapidated plants. It's ironic that some people focus on these permits as a problem and they are not looking at existing plants that they are personally connected to. Also it's ironic that no one is focused on private septic systems on individual property owners. These systems are not monitored on a daily basis and there is probably too much faith put into the hands of individual land owners to manage their own septic systems.
All permits include a maximum amount of discharge. So they have to essentially have extra volume built into them because sewer plants can expand as more land is added on or more homes are added and the capacity needs to be there. A general rule of thumb is 300 gallons per home per day of discharge. So 100,000 gallons of discharge equals 333 homes. This per day usage can be less with smaller homes, less bathrooms, and more efficient appliances and low use toilets.
Irrigation is an option with using some percentage of the sewer effluent, but we would still get the maximum discharge amount we need for our discharge permit. The plant has to be permitted also and the size of the plant has to coincide with the discharge permit. I'm not aware of sewer plants using 100% of their sewer effluent for irrigation. Irrigation systems can also be very expensive, especially if you are trying to get rid of a large quantity of water. Unfortunately, these systems would also go into the price of the lots and therefore the price of the homes would also increase.
Final comment: Water capacity and sewer demand are 2 of the most critical items for new housing developments. I think some people use sewer discharge, creek impacts, salamander claims as just their crux to prevent more housing from coming to the area. In my opinion, this is another example of NIMBYism."
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality weighing-in...or not weighing-in?
The TCEQ did not respond directly to our request for comment regarding concerns about all twelve plants and their proximity to one another but instead directed us to their website in which they addressed public comments to a specific permit.
While searching, through public records, 25News did locate documents where the TCEQ Executive Director responded to public comments for Permit Number WQ0016330001 also known as 050 Salado Creek, a permit currently under TCEQ review.
After addressing the concerns, the Executive Director noted they made no changes to the draft permit and said the permit is following regulations and and the TCEQ sought guidance from state and federal leaders.
25News did reach out to developers with 050 Salado Creek for comment and an interview request.
You can read TCEQ statements below:
"The Executive Director has determined that the draft permit's effluent limitations are consistent with the Texas Surface Water Quality Standards and are therefore protective of surface water quality, human health, and the environment. This level of surface water protection would also ensure protection of groundwater quality and its known uses."
"TCEQ does not have the authority to mandate the method of disposal of treated effluent if the applicant adheres to the rules and provisions under TWC Chapter 26 and 30 TAC Chapters 217, 305, 307 and 309."
"The EPA reviewed the draft permit and gave permission to proceed with the issuance of the draft permit on February 3, 2025.
Furthermore, the USFWS and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) were afforded an opportunity to review the permit application and proposed permit. Neither of these agencies provided comments or concerns about the discharge effects on the Salado salamander in the area."
What's next for this story?
We have interviewed business owners and local leaders regarding this matter. This is a developing and investigative story that we will continue to report on in the coming weeks.
