Upcoming Meetings -
Background -
Past Meetings -
Additional Information
Upcoming Meetings
The next series of open houses to provide an opportunity for stakeholders to learn about and provide input regarding data collection and analysis will be in 2009. If you are interested in a presentation or newsletter article for your community or organization, please contact:
Rachel Powers
Rachel.Powers@h-gac.com
(713) 993-4559
In the meantime, stakeholders from the Houston Metropolitan Area and other watersheds in the region are working to begin developing an implementation plan to reduce bacteria in the waterways. The Bacteria Implementation Group (BIG) is the committee responsible for developing the plan. Please visit the BIG webpage for more information and to learn how to be involved.
Background
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has determined that several watersheds within the Houston Metropolitan Area sometimes have bacteria levels that are higher than state standards for contact recreation.
The State of Texas requires that water quality in the Lake Houston watershed be suitable for swimming, wading, fishing, and aquatic life. Swimming and wading is called contact recreation in the state’s standards for water quality, referring to all recreation in which people come in direct contact with the water. People who swim or wade in the bayous may be at risk because of high level of bacteria. Bacteria from human and animal waste often indicate the presence of disease-causing microorganisms, which pose a threat to public health.
In response to the elevated bacteria levels in the bayous, the TCEQ initiated a total maximum daily load (TMDL) project to determine the measures necessary to support recreational uses in these water bodies. The goal of a TMDL is to determine the amount (or load) of a pollutant that a body of water can receive and still support its designated uses. The load is then allocated among all the potential sources of pollution within the watershed, and measures to reduce pollutant loads are developed as necessary.
The Houston Metro TMDL project is still collecting and analyzing data. More details are included in past meeting information, below, or on the TCEQ project website: www.tceq.state.tx.us/implementation/water/tmdl/72-houstonbacteria.html
Past Meetings
2008 November 12 (Eastern Houston): Presentation (PDF) 4M
2008 November 11 (Brays): Presentation (PDF) 3M
2008 November 10 (Halls): Presentation (PDF) 3M
2008 November 6 (Greens Bayou): Presentation (PDF) 3M
2008 November 5 (Sims Bayou): Presentation (PDF) 3M
2007 November 5 (Hunting & Halls): Agenda (PDF) 154K
2007 November 2 (Brays): Agenda (PDF) 154K | Presentation (PDF) 3.4M
2007 October 22 (Sims): Agenda (PDF) 154K | Presentation (PDF) 3.4M
2007 October 19 (Greens & Halls): Agenda (PDF) 154K | Presentation (PDF) 3.4M
2007 October 18 (Eastern Houston): Agenda (PDF) 154K | Presentation (PDF) 3.4M
2007 October 17 (Eastern Houston): Agenda (PDF) 154K | Presentation (PDF) 3.4M
2007 October 16 (Brays): Agenda (PDF) 154K | Presentation (PDF) 3.4M
Links and Additional Information
The TCEQ maintains a webpage for the Houston Metro TMDL Project: www.tceq.state.tx.us/implementation/water/tmdl/72-houstonbacteria.html
The Bacteria Implementation Group is developing an Implementation Plan for this and three other bacteria TMDL projects.
For more information, contact Rachel Powers:
Rachel.Powers@h-gac.com
(713) 993-4559
Updated December 10, 2008