Res 1995-047 - Laserfiche WebLink

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A SUMMARY OF THE 2Îß SAN MARCOS RIVER PROTECTION BILL What the bill will do: - It will require all other permitted effluent into the San Marcos River between San tvlarcos and Luling to be treated to at least the same high standards that the City of San rvlarcos must meet (5/5/2). -, - It will prohibit both the channelization and the realignment of the river. lannelization means the practice of changing a natural stream into a man made ditch canal, channel realignment means the practice by which dredging, ditching, or other means are used to shorten or reroute the natural stream course. Many examples of both of these practices exist in the Houston area. It is our hope that we can maintain our beautiful and natural river and let people continue to visit the Houston area to see such examples. - It will prohibit the construction of a large reservoir (and the resulting destruction of the river) along the entire length of the River. It should be noted that no good sites for such a reservoir e.xist, and none are currently planned. - It will mandate that all future dams (small impoundments), bridges and/or pipelines be constructed in such a way to preserve the scenic beauty and navigational use of the river. What the bill will not do: - It will not affect private property or the rights of property owners. The bill ly affects the state owned riverbed, Le., only the land that the State of Te.xas owns. , - It will not prohibit the removal of silt from the river directed at restoring the natural streambed. Since the construction of the flood control dams on the watershed, the scouring effect of floods on the river has stopped. This bill recognizes the need to return the riverbed to its original condition through limited dredging or other desiltation practices and those practices are not prohibited. - It will not prohibit the construction of an on-channel impoundment used to appropriate municipal water or the construction of an off-channel reservoir to store that water. - It will not prohibit the repair or removal of an existing impoundment. It is our hope that any future remodeling of dams should take the mandates of this legislation into account, but previously permitted structures are unaffected.