Assessing Potential Implications of Climate Change for Long-Term Water Resources Planning in the Lower Colorado River Basin

The Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) — San Antonio Water System (SAWS) Water Project is being studied to conserve water, develop conjunctive groundwater supplies, and capture excess and unused river flows to meet future water needs for two neighboring regions in Texas. Agricultural and other rural water needs would be met on a more reliable basis in the lower Colorado River basin through water conservation, surface water development and limited groundwater production. Surface water would be transferred to the San Antonio area to meet municipal needs in quantities still being evaluated. The project is in its sixth year of detailed studies addressing environmental, agricultural, socioeconomic, and engineering aspects of the project. Tools are being developed and used in project planning including instream flow criteria, water quality assessments, bay freshwater inflow criteria, surface water availability models and operating approaches, agricultural conservation measures, groundwater models, and economic models.