Underground Infrastructure - October 2023 - 10

NEWSLINE LATEST INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENTS
are not unique, they exemplify a broader
problem. As per Amarillo Globe-News, a
2016 report revealed that 65 Texas water
systems contained excessive levels of arsenic,
exposing approximately 51,000 Texans to this
contaminant. Most of these systems were
concentrated in rural areas of West Texas.
Financial relief is on the horizon, as
Texas has been allocated approximately
$2.5 billion in federal funding dedicated to
water infrastructure through the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act. Additionally, the state
has earmarked more than $2 billion to improve
water supplies, address failing infrastructure,
and mitigate flooding. According to Amarillo
Globe-News, a significant portion of this
funding-$1 billion-will be directed towards
the New Water Supply for Texas Fund and the
Texas Water Fund, pending approval from
voters in the fall election.
Ken Rainwater, a civil engineer based in
Lubbock serving as an engineering consultant
for the newly formed corporation, emphasized
the importance of capital improvements
for water systems like these, which lack the
resources of larger municipalities.
Part of the issue traces back to the 2021
Winter Storm Uri, which exacerbated the
water problems in these communities due to
inadequately weatherized treatment plants.
Other contamination issues have persisted
longer, becoming problematic when TCEQ
lowered the maximum allowable levels of
arsenic and fluoride.
Before the South Plains Water Supply
Corporation's formation, the state intervened
following an April 2021 investigation. Amarillo
Globe-News reveals that this investigation
uncovered that the owner and operator of
the four water systems had passed away, and
the new operator had experienced a medical
emergency. TCEQ subsequently appointed an
independent company to temporarily manage
the deteriorating, abandoned water systems.
Such emergency measures are rare, according
to a TCEQ spokesperson, and temporary
managers do not own the utility but are tasked
with ensuring continuous and adequate service.
Deborah Hunt, a resident of Town North
Estates and secretary-treasurer of South Plains
Water Supply Corporation, expressed her
reluctance to drink the local water due to its
poor taste. She and her neighbors have also
10 OCTOBER 2023 | UndergroundInfrastructure.com
had to contend with low water pressure.
While efforts were made during the recent
legislative session to pass House Bill 2701,
allowing public water and wastewater utilities
to join forces for efficiency and cost savings,
the bill only cleared the House and did not
pass in the Senate. However, Sheets and
Carlos Rubinstein, a former chair of the Texas
Water Development Board, have plans to
reintroduce the legislation during the next
regular session. In the meantime, they are
committed to supporting small water systems,
including the newly established South Plains
Water Supply Corporation.
Advocates urge expanded
public hearings about
Baltimore's water, sewer system
The Baltimore Regional Water Governance
Task Force announced that it would hold
four in-person meetings over the course
of this fall, before recommending a new
governance model for the city's water and
wastewater system.
Advocates are calling into question the
locations of the Task Force meetings and
the lack of a virtual participation option at
every meeting. None of the meetings will
be located in central locations within the
city, and none are in the majority Black
neighborhoods in West or East Baltimore -
despite the disparate impacts of unaffordable
water bills and the E. coli contamination of
last year in West Baltimore.
The Task Force will have two virtual
meetings, one in mid-November and another
in January. The final report is due to the
legislature on January 30, 2024.
Throughout the process, a coalition of
local organizations have urged the task
force to conduct racial and economic equity
assessments, preserve local ratepayer and
labor protections, hold public hearings and
a robust comment period, and exclude
privatization options that would undermine
local control.
South Dakota panel denies
application for CO2
pipeline;
Summit to refile for permit
South Dakota regulators rejected a permit
application for a proposed carbon dioxide
pipeline through the state, dealing a fresh
setback to the company behind the multistate
project after North Dakota refused a permit for
another leg there.
The South Dakota Public Utilities
Commission voted unanimously to turn
down Summit Carbon Solutions' application
to build a 469-mile in-state route - part of
an intended $5.5 billion, 2,000-mile pipeline
network through five states.
The decision complicates an already
complex process for Summit Carbon Solutions
as it seeks similar authorization in other
states amid opposition from landowners and
environmental groups. The proposed network
would carry planet-warming carbon dioxide
emissions from more than 30 ethanol plants
in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota
and South Dakota for permanent underground
storage in central North Dakota.
After the South Dakota vote, Summit
announced it intends " to refine its proposal
and reapply for a permit in a timely manner. "
The project would use carbon capture
technology, what supporters see as a
combatant of climate change, though
opponents criticize its effectiveness at scale
and the need for potentially huge investments
over cheaper renewable energy sources. New
federal tax incentives and billions of dollars
from Congress toward carbon capture efforts
have made such projects lucrative.
The South Dakota panel's vote came on
a motion made Friday by commission staff.
They said Summit's proposed route would
violate county ordinances involving setback
distances. The panel on Monday was to have
begun a weekslong hearing for Summit's
proposal, but the hearing was adjourned and
will not continue.
" It makes little sense to go through the
motions of a three-week evidentiary hearing
and all that would follow without a compliant
route that can be permitted, " Commission Staff
Attorney Kristen Edwards said.
" I believe that the applicant will be able
to come back with, eventually, a clean
application, and when they do, that is when it
is proper to examine it, " Hanson said.
Summit CEO Lee Blank said in a statement,
" We respect this initial ruling and remain
committed to South Dakota and deeply
appreciative of the overwhelming support
we have received from landowners and
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Underground Infrastructure - October 2023

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