Neighbors, water activists worry a Hays County development will threaten water supply

HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) – Some Hays County residents and water activists are concerned a proposed wastewater plant for a new development, which would be built in an environmentally sensitive region, could affect the water quality in the area.

Developer Milestone Community Builders has proposed a high-density development called the Hays Commons that would sit on around 290 acres of land just north of the small city of Hays. Part of the development would include building and maintaining a wastewater facility. Water experts say the development would be built on the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone , an area of land that allows for a large quantity of water to flow into the aquifer.

According to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the developer has applied for a permit that would allow them to dispose of up to 150,000 gallons of treated wastewater daily via surface irrigation.

“[The developer] wants to irrigate over the recharge zone. That’s the problem we have with it – there is no safe way to irrigate treated sewage over the recharge zone,” said Mike Clifford, the technical director at the Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance.

Before the developer can start disposing of treated wastewater, a TCEQ spokesperson said it must obtain a Texas Land Application Permit. Since the facility would be built on the Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone, the spokesperson said the developer must meet additional code requirements so that the area is protected.

A spokesperson for TCEQ said the application is still pending, and it will accept public comments until July 25.

Even if the application is approved, Clifford worries the development would negatively impact the area and the aquifer.

“I think it’s a substantial threat because you really don’t want this type of development in this area,” he said. “When you have somebody irrigating treated sewage in [the recharge zone], any treated sewage that isn’t absorbed by the soils, which are very thin in this area, [are] just going to flow into the Edwards Aquifer.”

In a statement to KXAN, a representative from Milestone said, “We’re looking forward to working with state and local authorities throughout the approval process, as well as all constituent groups.”

The statement said it would also consider alternative solutions, but, “for those solutions to become viable, community support will be needed for the alternatives to the onsite Wastewater treatment plant.”

Jim Camp has lived in a home for several decades about a mile from where the Hays Commons development would go. He said he’s not against development in the area, but wants it to be done responsibly.

“We’re just concerned about the drinking water for our families,” Camp said. “This is a coalition of people that just want to protect the drinking water as best as we can and to protect the swimming at Barton Springs.”

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