One Water partnership to serve New Braunfels, Texas
September 11, 2023
“Guadalupe River, New Braunfels, Texas,” by Nicholas Henderson, licensed under CC By 2.0.
Water is central to the identity of New Braunfels, a fast-growing Central Texas city with a population of approximately 105,000. The city’s iconic Landa Park is home to the Comal Springs, the largest springs complex in Texas. The scenic Comal and Guadalupe Rivers flow through New Braunfels’ boundaries, and the city’s main tourist destination — the Schlitterbahn Water Park and Resort — could not exist without water.
Acknowledging this critical dependence on water, three governmental entities serving the New Braunfels area — New Braunfels Utilities (NBU), the City of New Braunfels, and the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority (GBRA) — recently launched One Water New Braunfels, a partnership that aims to promote collaboration and a more holistic approach to water management locally.
Breaking through barriers
Among the three entities, the NBU manages drinking water, wastewater, and electricity, while the city handles stormwater and local water quality. For its part, the GBRA oversees water resources within a 10-county area in the Guadalupe River watershed.
Launched on August 15, One Water New Braunfels is the culmination of efforts begun by the three organizations in August 2019 to address water issues in a more unified way.
“Historically, our communities have operated under a traditional approach of water resource management, where different agencies were responsible for different functions leading to siloed efforts that often did not address water challenges comprehensively,” said Ryan Kelso, the NBU’s interim chief executive officer, at an August 15 news conference in New Braunfels. “One Water New Braunfels was born out of the recognition that water is all one water and that the need to come together to manage it effectively is paramount,” Kelso said.
Darrell Nichols, the GBRA’s general manager and CEO, also acknowledged the importance of overcoming the silos that traditionally inhibit integrated approaches to water planning and management. “One Water New Braunfels breaks through these barriers by creating a partnership with resources and expertise in surface water, groundwater, and reclamation strategies that is unique,” Nichols said at the August 15 news conference. “This group is uniquely positioned to address the connection between these three different supply sources.”
The collaboration among the three partners aims “to ensure water remains a celebrated and protected feature of New Braunfels,” said Judith Hoffmann, the president of the NBU Board, during the news conference.
Neal Linnartz, the mayor of New Braunfels, cast the partnership as a key step toward maintaining the character and prosperity of the city into the future. “New Braunfels runs on water, from the safe and clean water from our faucets, to Landa Park, to the Comal River, and to Schlitterbahn,” Linnartz said at the news conference. “Water is critical to our community's vibrant health and economy. The vision of One Water New Braunfels will help us preserve and enhance our way of life.”
Advisory committee formed
The August 15 launch occurred a day after the New Braunfels City Council voted to approve an interlocal agreement establishing One Water New Braunfels. The vote followed previous approvals of the agreement earlier this summer by the NBU Board of Trustees and the GBRA Board of Directors.
The interlocal agreement “outlines the governance and management of the One Water New Braunfels program,” according to an August 15 news release jointly issued by the NBU, the city, and the GBRA. The agreement has a three-year term and can be extended up to three terms of three years.
Among its provisions, the interlocal agreement establishes a One Water Advisory Committee (OWAC) comprising one member and one alternative member from the NBU, the city, and the GBRA. Along with providing strategic guidance, approving a budget, and engaging in public outreach, the OWAC is responsible for revising the New Braunfels One Water Roadmap, a 2021 document outlining the “foundational principles and recommendations for” the One Water Program, according to the interlocal agreement.
Having a single committee oversee the One Water New Braunfels program will be key to avoiding bureaucratic gridlock, said Sarah Richards, the NBU’s director of customer solutions, in an interview with One Water News. “Because with three separate agencies, if we had to constantly go through the hoops at each agency to move anything forward, it would lose steam because of all of that work,” Richards said.
Instead, the OWAC “has the authority to make decisions about the budget and the projects, instead of having to present to the boards and councils for every decision that's being made on behalf of the three agencies,” Richards noted.
The interlocal agreement also established the One Water Working Group, which consists of staff from the NBU, the city, and the GBRA. Among its duties, the One Water Working Group will gather and share information on integrated water planning and management, evaluate strategies and progress on the Roadmap, engage in public outreach, and make recommendations to the OWAC regarding shared projects, changes to Roadmap strategies, and the use of program fund money.
In accordance with the interlocal agreement, the NBU and the city each will provide $50,000 annually to a program fund for One Water New Braunfels, while the GBRA will provide $10,000 per year.
The NBU recently hired a program coordinator to manage day-to-day operations of One Water New Braunfels. This position has been filled by Robin Gary, the former director of Watershed Protection and Conservation Science for the Watershed Association, a nonprofit organization based in Wimberley, Texas, that is dedicated to protecting local water resources.
Roadmap for One Water
Included as an attachment to the interlocal agreement, the One Water New Braunfels Roadmap spells out five “action areas” to be achieved as part of the new program:
Plan for and manage water resources holistically and sustainably
Maximize environmental, social, and economic benefits to New Braunfels
Ensure water remains a celebrated feature of New Braunfels
Provide sustainable and high-quality water for people
Ensure healthy watersheds, waterways, and groundwater resources
For each action area, the Roadmap includes various objectives, each of which is subdivided into multiple “strategic directions.” In turn, each strategic direction has corresponding indicators and targets. Each strategic direction also is assigned various action plan items that are categorized either as short term, mid-term, or long-term activities. All told, the Roadmap has 20 strategic directions, 31 indicators, and 60 targets.
For example, as part of the second action area — maximize environmental, social, and economic benefits to New Braunfels — the Roadmap includes the following strategic direction: “prioritizing projects, programs, and policies that consider and balance these goals.”
Corresponding indicators include “adoption of triple bottom line scoring matrix” and “increase use of scoring matrix on all projects,” according to the Roadmap. Related targets call for developing the matrix and an evaluation plan, showing “year to year improvement in project selection that are put through the matrix,” and ensuring “all new projects in the pipeline have scores at or above” a number to be determined by the One Water Working Group.
Getting the word out
Moving forward, “some of the immediate next steps” for One Water New Braunfels include the creation of a website for the partnership and a logo design contest, Kelso told One Water News. Open to all New Braunfels residents, the contest extends through October 16.
The website and design contest are part of efforts by the new partnership to promote a better understanding of the One Water concept among the local community. “A lot of folks are really unaware of One Water and what it is, and that's why our focus is going to be marketing and communications early and often,” Kelso said.
“Getting the word out there and educating the public is going to be the first step, before we start getting their feedback and input on where we go with this program,” Kelso said. “We want as much community engagement as possible.”
‘Visionary approach’
Ultimately, One Water New Braunfels “represents a collaborative and visionary approach to water management that transcends agency boundaries and prioritizes the needs of our community and environment,” Kelso said. “By embracing this integrated approach, we can ensure a resilient and sustainable water supply for future generations.”
“For GBRA, participating in One Water New Braunfels underscores our commitment to the communities we serve,” Nichols said. “Safeguarding our water resources helps to secure the continued access to high quality, reliable water service, ensuring that our region continues to thrive in the face of changing environmental conditions and incredible population growth. Our goal is to tackle region wide the supply challenges head on.”
“The One Water initiative stands as a testament to our joint dedication to a water secure future by these three entities,” Nichols said. “Combining our expertise and resources, we're forging a path towards sustainable water management that will have a positive and lasting impact on New Braunfels and its residents for many generations to come and will serve as a model for other communities in this region and in this great state.”