Drought hits a rice field in Texas. houstontomorrow.orgBy Matthew Tresaugue and Mike Glenn
23 February 2012

Rice growers have come to expect certain things from the coastal plain near Matagorda Bay: sun, rich soil and abundant water. But after the driest year on record in Texas, the farmers might be without water for the first time. The Lower Colorado River Authority, which manages the river from just above Austin to the bay, will decide March 1 whether to withhold water from one of the most fertile granaries in the nation. The decision would affect farmers in Colorado, Matagorda and Wharton counties, which produce 5 percent of the U.S. rice crop. Despite recent rainfall, the LCRA might have no choice but to cut off the farmers. The Highland Lakes, two large reservoirs near Austin, must hold a combined 850,000 acre-feet of water by next week before the growers’ share can be released. This comes under a drought emergency plan now in effect. As of Wednesday, the lakes had 830,000 acre-feet, or 41 percent of their capacity. An acre-foot is about 326,000 gallons, enough to serve two typical Texas families for a year. L.G. Raun, a third-generation rice farmer in Wharton County, said he does not expect the LCRA to release water even if the levels at Lakes Buchanan and Travis are near the key marker. “It really does not matter,” Raun said of the rain and rising lake levels. “It will be zero water released for irrigation.” Rice farmers are the largest water users in the Colorado River basin. But their supply is interruptible during dry times, unlike the shares for cities and industry. Some growers said they can produce a fraction of their usual crop with groundwater this year, but digging wells is too expensive for most. While irrigated rice farming began in the lower basin in 1885, it was high-risk business until the LCRA built the Highland Lakes to store water and provide a reliable supply in the 1930s. The LCRA now must deal with several straws in the river, including thirsty cities, power plants, recreation-related businesses along the lakes and commercial coastal fisheries. The state projects the population of the lower basin to double to 2.8 million people by 2060, and it is becoming clear that there is not enough water to meet everyone’s needs. […]

Water could be cut off for Texas rice farmers