The Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District on Jan. 15 denied Forestar Real Estate Group's permit that would have allowed the company to pump up to 45,000 acre-feet of water annually from wells in Lee County for use in Hays, Bastrop, Lee, Travis and Williamson counties.

Forestar has already been granted 12,000 of the 45,000 acre-feet of water it originally requested. The company has a reservation contract in place with Hays County for up to 45,000 acre-feet of water to be pumped from the Simsboro Aquifer annually.

Steve Box, executive director of the Bastrop-based advocacy group Environmental Stewardship, said he was pleased with the district's decision and is ready to support the district if Forestar decides to contest the decision in court.

"It's what I call a bittersweet victory because we're going to face the big hammer next," Box said in reference to Forestar's possible legal contest.

Forestar issued a statement saying the permit was intended to address Central Texas' water needs.

"We are disappointed for Forestar, but more importantly for all landowners within the conservation district, whose private property rights have been adversely impacted by this decision," the company's statement read. "We are also concerned for the citizens of Central Texas, as they seek long-term sustainable solutions to the ongoing drought and their future water needs."

At a Hays County Commissioners Court meeting Sept. 24, County Judge Bert Cobb said county officials have spent time and effort trying to convince the Lower Colorado River Authority and Guadalupe Blanco River Authority to secure additional water for Hays County, but they failed to act.

Bill West, general manager of the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority, said his organization has been working since 2004 on the Mid Basin Project, which he said will supply about 50,000 acre-feet of water annually to the high-growth areas around I-35 and SH 130 when it is built out. West said the GBRA is hopeful the state's newly created State Water Implementation Fund for Texas will help finance the project.

Box has taken issue with Cobb's statement that 25 percent of the Simsboro Aquifer recharges each year. The actual recharge rate of the aquifer is much lower, he said.

Another point of contention, he said, is the issue of drawdown—or lowering levels—of the aquifers. Box said the Lost Pines district originally requested a drawdown level of between 35 and 50 feet, but because of huge pumping already in place in the neighboring Post Oak Savannah region, the aquifer's drawdown levels had to be set at a range of 7 to 345 feet.

"It was clear to many of us that our rural communities were being targeted for water exports to more urban growth corridors," Box said.