Midland officials have approved an agreement between the cities of Abilene and San Angelo that local leaders say will help secure the city’s water supply for a century.
On Tuesday, the Midland City Council approved a memorandum of understanding with the two West Texas cities to begin developing the infrastructure to tap into a water source outside of Fort Stockton.
The three communities first acquired the rights to this groundwater in 2020 in a multimillion dollar export deal with Fort Stockton Holdings, a company owned by the family of the late Clayton Williams — a West Texas businessman who ran for governor in 1990.
With the agreement, the communities have now laid out how they will work together to begin building the infrastructure needed to transport millions of gallons of water.
“We know that our population has grown dramatically in recent years and we anticipate based on all metrics that we review that that expansion is going to continue,” Midland Mayor Lori Blong said during a press conference last week. “So we need to make sure that we have water not just for today but for future generations.”
This agreement kicks off the first phase of developing this water source, which draws water from the Edwards-Trinity Aquifer, a water system that covers much of the southwest corner of the state. Midland leaders estimate once this project is completed, it will shore up the community’s water supply for decades.
According to Blong, this project will eventually lead to “100-year water security,” but for now the priority is to acquire the land for a pipeline and build out other infrastructure.
“We do not want Midlanders to hear that we're building a new pipeline tomorrow,” she said. “Phase one is really the acquisition of right of way and the future planning of our ability to utilize this water,” she said.
While the water will be shared with both Abilene and San Angelo, officials say it will add a substantial amount of water to the city’s supply.
“I believe it’s a 22% increase in our total water we’ll have available in Midland,” Councilman Eric Davidson said on Tuesday. “So [this] adds thirteen-and-a-half million gallons per day, so a large quantity of water for the future.”
Despite local officials celebrating the agreement and the water security it will provide, this deal has raised some concerns. In the past, the parent company of a pecan farm near Fort Stockton has challenged the water export deal, saying that selling this water to the three cities will deplete the aquifer.
The Fort Stockton area was once known for its fresh water springs — specifically Comanche Springs, which, at its height, flowed with 30 million gallons of water a day. However, due to heavy agricultural use over the years, many of the springs have largely run dry.
But this concern hasn’t dampened the enthusiasm Midland leaders have expressed over the deal.
Blong said, “Midlanders understand that we live in West Texas and with the climate concerns that we all have, we believe that long term water security is a priority and we think this is a step in that direction.”
It will still be years before the pipeline project is completed and, according to one Midland official, the city won’t have access to this water until at least the 2030s.
