Water District Responds to Groundwater Permit Scandal
Greg Ritchie
Messenger Reporter
EAST TEXAS – Following mounting public pressure over a proposal to extract nearly all of one area aquifer’s modeled sustainable groundwater supply, the Neches and Trinity Valleys Groundwater Conservation District (NTVGCD) provided The Messenger with a statement but left key concerns from residents and local officials unanswered.
In a statement released June 2, the district acknowledged receiving 43 applications to drill water wells — some linked to Redtown Ranch Holdings, the company behind the contentious permit request. However, the district emphasized it has not yet received any application “to operate the wells or to transport the water out of the District.”
“The Board of Directors of the District is charged by law with reviewing the evidence presented and considering the rights and responsibilities of all parties involved,” the statement read.
A public hearing has been set for June 19 at 1 p.m. at NTVGCD, located at 501 Devereaux Suite 201 in Jacksonville.
The statement marks the district’s first formal response since Redtown Ranch Holdings applied to extract groundwater volumes that account for roughly 98.9% of the aquifer’s modeled available supply, sparking alarm from water providers, elected officials, and private landowners.
Amber Stelly, general manager of Consolidated Water Supply in Houston County, previously told The Messenger that granting the permit would effectively authorize more withdrawal than the aquifer can sustainably support, based on the district’s own calculations.
“We’re tasked with making sure our water lasts for generations,” Stelly said. “This isn’t just paperwork. This is about safeguarding the future of water in our community.”
Despite the scale of the project, The Messenger has posed a series of questions that remain unanswered by the district. Among them: How long has the district known about Redtown’s plans? What due diligence has been done? And critically, why is a permit application for such massive withdrawals allowed to cite “all beneficial uses” without specifying an end use, as typically required by the Texas Water Code?
In its brief statement, the district reiterated it will follow all legal requirements.
“It intends to adhere to the requirements of the Texas Water Code and the District Rules,” the release stated.
But questions about transparency and potential conflicts of interest remain. Board member Donald Foster has reportedly been linked to a potential drilling contract associated with the application — a claim not addressed in the district’s statement. The Messenger has also asked whether any other board members may have conflicts and what, if any, commitments have already been made to Redtown Ranch Holdings.
Local opposition has continued to build. Anderson County Judge Carey McKinney and Houston County Judge Jim Lovell have pledged to formally challenge the permit.
“We must contest the applications for the permits to protect our water resources so that our community water systems and private wells…will not go dry,” McKinney said in a recent meeting. “This literally will affect every citizen in our counties.”
For more information regarding Judge Lovell’s and Houston County’s response see related story in today’s edition.
The company has said permits would still be required before any drilling could occur. But opponents question whether securing the drilling permits would effectively pave the way for groundwater use on a scale that could deplete the aquifer for decades.
With the hearing scheduled for June 19, residents, water providers, and county officials are urging full transparency from the district and a thorough accounting of potential environmental and economic impacts.
For now, the future of a critical natural resource — and the trust of the communities that depend on it — remains in limbo.
Greg Ritchie can be reached at [email protected]
