One Water New Braunfels, a collaborative interagency program focused on water conservation and maintenance, was launched Aug. 15. The city of New Braunfels, New Braunfels Utilities and Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority celebrated the official start of the initiative at the Headwaters at the Comal.

The three agencies spent several years identifying the primary challenges facing New Braunfels water resources and intend to work collaboratively with the community to address the challenges.

Diving in deeper

The culmination of their efforts so far has been outlined in the One Water New Braunfels Roadmap, which defines multiple key priorities to support long-term water conservation, including:

• Plan for and manage water resources holistically and sustainably.
• Maximize environmental, social and economic benefits to New Braunfels.
• Ensure water remains a celebrated feature of the community.
• Build a community of water-conscious citizens.
• Provide a sustainable and resilient water supply for people.
• Ensure high-quality drinking water and water quality that meets the standards for its intended use.
• Improve health of local watersheds, waterways and groundwater resources.

“My predecessor, Ian Taylor, learned that communities across the nation were embracing the holistic approach to water management and reached out to the city of New Braunfels and Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority, who shared our interest in this approach, and together we began to form a roadmap to bring One Water New Braunfels to fruition,” interim CEO Ryan Kelso said. “I am honored to continue NBU’s leadership on this important effort. As the current drought conditions highlight, ensuring the resilience of our water resources is of the utmost importance to the community, our water supplies and our economy.”

One Water New Braunfels was launched Aug. 15 after being approved by the NBU board of trustees, GBRA board of directors and City Council. The agreement outlines the management of One Water New Braunfels program and established an advisory council and a working group responsible for the continued implementation of the New Braunfels One Water Roadmap. A program coordinator will be responsible for managing day-to-day operations of the program, supporting the efforts of the advisory council and working group, and serving as primary liaison with the community, according to NBU.

“The Comal River, Comal Springs and Landa Lake are the lifeblood of New Braunfels, and the city is proud to participate in this journey that will have lasting benefits to our community,” New Braunfels Mayor Neal Linnartz said.

The specifics

According to NBU, the Water Research Foundation has defined One Water as an integrated planning and implementation approach to managing finite water resources for long-term resilience and reliability to meet economic, community and ecosystem needs. The One Water methodology requires thinking of water as a single system and recognizes that all water flows—including stormwater, rainwaters and wastewater—are viable water resources.

“Water management typically takes place in silos, even though our water resources are interconnected,” GBRA General Manager and CEO Darrell Nichols said. “One Water New Braunfels breaks through these barriers, creating a partnership with the resources and expertise necessary to ensure the long-term sustainability of the water supply for this region. For GBRA, our participation in One Water New Braunfels underscores our commitment to the entire Guadalupe-River watershed as it not only supports the local water resources, but will have lasting benefits downstream and to the Gulf of Mexico.”

One Water New Braunfels also announced the launch of the logo design contest for the initiative Aug. 15. The contest is now open to all New Braunfels residents to create an original logo design that captures the beauty and importance of New Braunfels' water resources. The contest will be open through Oct. 16. More information on the logo contest can be found at www.nbutexas.com/one-water-logo.

“The One Water New Braunfels program gives us the important foundation we need to achieve our ambitious vision for New Braunfels’ watersheds, waterways, and groundwater,” NBU Board President Judith Hoffmann added. “And importantly, the program recognizes that our citizens will play an important role in achieving success as we move forward.”

The community is encouraged to get involved with the One Water New Braunfels program. Announcements for upcoming workshops and learning sessions can be found at www.nbutexas.com/one-water.