How Does the Clean Rivers Program Work?
In 1991 the Texas Legislature passed the Texas Clean Rivers Act
in response to growing concerns that water resource issues were not
being addressed in a holistic manner. This legislation requires
that water quality assessments be conducted for each river basin in
Texas using an approach that integrates water quality issues within
a river basin or watershed. To fund the program, the TCEQ assesses
a fee from permit holders for water use and wastewater
discharges.
The TCEQ implements the Program by contracting with 15 partner
agencies, including 12 river authorities, one water district, one
federal agency, and one council of government, to conduct water
quality monitoring and assessments in the 23 river and coastal
basins of Texas. Each river or coastal basin is assigned to one of
the designated partner agencies.
How Does the Public Participate?
The Texas Clean Rivers Act established a way for the citizens of
Texas to participate in building the foundation for effective
statewide watershed planning activities. Each CRP partner agency
has established a steering committee to set priorities within its
basin. These committees bring together the diverse interests in
each basin and watershed. Steering committee participants include
representatives from the public, government, industry, business,
agriculture, and environmental groups. The steering committee is
designed to allow local concerns to be addressed and regional
solutions are recommended. For more information about participating
in these steering committee meetings and to contribute your views
about water quality, contact the appropriate
CRP partner agency for your river basin.
Stakeholder Input for Program Improvement
In September 1995, the TCEQ began meeting with a diverse
stakeholder group to seek ways to improve the Clean Rivers Program.
Stakeholders are those persons or agencies involved in or affected
by watershed management activities within a river basin.
Representatives from government, industry, business, agriculture,
and environmental interest groups served as the statewide
stakeholder group at meetings held to discuss watershed management
and the future of the CRP. Support for the CRP was mixed, but the
consensus was that the existing structure did not have sufficient
support among the major fee payers (water and wastewater permit
holders) to reauthorize the program beyond August 31, 1998. The
stakeholders identified the significant issues with the program and
formed two subcommittees to develop legislative and funding
recommendations.
The primary focus of the Legislative Subcommittee was to
identify solutions to the stakeholders’ significant program
issues. The Legislative Subcommittee responded to the stakeholders'
concerns by proposing program revisions in five major areas of the
Texas Water Code: monitoring and assessment, accountability,
Texas Water Code 26.177 
, the TCEQ’s administration and use of
water quality information, and public participation.
The primary focus of the Funding Subcommittee was to identify
funding sources to broaden the fee-payer base and to achieve equity
in the fee assessment. A comprehensive list of options was
developed and evaluated based on equity, administrative
feasibility, the stability of the revenue source, whether the
funding source was water-related, the pollution-reduction incentive
of the funding option, and legislative practicality. Ultimately,
the Funding Subcommittee recommended continuation of the existing
funding mechanism.
Why Does the Clean Rivers Program Use a Watershed Management
Approach?
Watershed management, a resource-centered approach, is not a new
program. It is simply a way to coordinate operations of existing
water resource programs to better achieve water resource management
goals and objectives. The term “watershed” in this
context is broadly defined as the geographic delineation of an
entire river basin and the land that drains into it.
Management by watershed is both logical and necessary. All
surface water within a basin that is not consumed, contained, or
evaporated eventually reaches the major rivers of that basin.
Consequently, all human and natural activities upstream have the
potential to affect water quality and quantity downstream.
Industrial, municipal, agricultural, and other activities are
interrelated with the quality of surface water within a
watershed.
The CRP provides a vehicle for local, regional, and statewide
interests to examine water quality issues on a watershed basis.
Planning and management by watershed allows the examination of
complex relationships between water resources and human activity.
The water quality assessments performed under the CRP focus on the
cumulative effects of a variety of potential pollutant sources
within the context of the natural setting of a particular
watershed.
By looking at the entire watershed and the total impacts on the
water quality of that system, more informed decisions are possible
when implementing permits and other management practices that
protect water resources. The effects of discharges from domestic
and industrial point sources can be assessed in relation to other
contributing factors. Nonpoint source pollutants, such as those
from agricultural and urban stormwater runoff, can greatly affect
water quality and must be factored into any watershed management
system. Natural influences that may be unique to a particular
ecoregion or watershed must also be considered.
For More Information
Visit
Texas Clean Rivers Program: An Introduction for links to water
quality assessments, guidance, and partner information.
