(NTMWD) Both the United States Senate and the House of Representatives passed and President Obama recently signed a bill that allows the North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD) to resume pumping water from Lake Texoma when a new $300 million pipeline is completed in the fall of 2013. Currently, NTMWD cannot utilize water from Lake Texoma, which represents 28% of its water supply, because of the invasive zebra mussel.
Despite the legislative action that will restore the Lake Texoma water supply late next year, the NTMWD remains under Stage 2 water management measures in response to the current drought conditions. An unseasonably dry summer and fall has resulted in Lavon Lake, the district’s primary reservoir, to drop almost 10 feet below the normal water level. Water efficient practices are necessary to extend the current available supplies until Lavon Lake receives much needed rain inflows and the Texoma supply is restored.