Thursday, April 25, 2024
Connie Tucker
BRAZOS RIVER AUTHORITY
Connie Tucker is the Brazos River Authority’s Lake Granbury reservoir manager. She has worked for the BRA for more than 10 years.
Summer is nearly here. We’re gearing up to welcome thousands of visitors to Lake Granbury. Before it arrives, here are a few things to consider.
KID’S LIFE JACKET
We can’t stress enough that a simple life jacket really is the difference between life and death on the water. We want all children enjoying Lake Granbury to be able to go home safely at the end of the day.
On May 21 from 10 a.m. to noon, we will hold another free kid’s life jacket giveaway at Hunter Park, while supplies last. If your children will be near water this summer, come out for a free kid’s life jacket. Our lake rangers will help you find the correct size for your child and answer any questions you may have about the lake.
HAVE A BOAT ON LAKE GRANBURY?
If you’ve enjoyed a boat ride on Lake Granbury, you’ve probably had some experience with uncontrolled wakes. Lake Granbury is a narrow reservoir and a boat’s wake can affect and even damage other boats, docks and sea walls.
This summer, we’d like to remind everyone to be safe, stay aware of your boat’s speed and “watch your wake.” The Texas Water Safety Act states it is illegal for a boater to create a hazardous wake or wash, and you, the boat operator, can be held responsible for any damage caused by your boat’s wake. Please remember to stay at least 50 feet away from docks, marinas and the shoreline to prevent harm or damage from your boat’s wake.
ALLENS CREEK RESERVOIR
A few weeks ago, the BRA board of directors voted to purchase all rights to the proposed Allens Creek Reservoir from the City of Houston. You might be thinking… that’s nice, but I live in Granbury. Actually, this new reservoir is good news for everyone in the Brazos River basin.
Lake Granbury is part of an 11-reservoir system of water supply storage for the Brazos basin. The lake stores water for use by cities, industry, farms and ranches in this area to meet our daily needs. But as part of that system, if water is needed downstream due to drought conditions, gates can be opened at Lake Granbury to send some of the water stored here to other areas of the basin. Once the Allens Creek Reservoir is built, there will be an additional 100,000 acre-feet of water available for water supply in the lower Brazos basin, decreasing the chances that water supply stored in Lake Granbury will be needed downstream.
It will take about 10 years for Allens Creek Reservoir to be built near the town of Sealy in Austin County. But more water supply is good news for all of Texas.
SPEAKING OF DROUGHT…
The weather forecasts for the summer are showing drought conditions are expected to increase throughout the Brazos River basin. What this means for our area is that there will be less rainfall and the water supply stored in Lake Granbury will begin to be used to water lawns, fill pools and cool the nuclear power plant that, in turn, provides electricity to cool our homes.
If the drought continues, you can expect that lake levels will begin to fall, not only from using the water but from evaporation as temperatures increase this summer.
Just remember, this is normal for Texas. Lake Granbury was built to store water when there is ample rain so that we have water to meet all of our daily needs during drought. We’re hoping the drought breaks sooner than expected, but it’s always a good idea to conserve water where you can.
