Lawmakers hear debate over massive groundwater extraction

PALESTINE — Many lawmakers are raising urgent questions about how the state will sustain this growth, particularly regarding critical resources like water.

According to our news partner KETK, the Texas House Natural Resources Committee held a hearing in Austin on Tuesday to examine the impact of high-capacity groundwater extraction in the Neches and Trinity Valleys Groundwater Conservation Districts. This discussion comes as Redtown Ranch Holdings LLC, based in Anderson County, seeks a permit for 21 high-capacity wells that Crockett City Administrator John Angerstein warns could extract up to 10 billion gallons annually from the Carrizo and Wilcox aquifers. An additional 11 wells proposed in Houston County could drain another 5 billion gallons each year.

To put that in perspective, Angerstein notes that the 21 wells alone would withdraw 52 times the volume of water used annually by the entire City of Crockett, enough to supply a population of 338,000. “Yet none of this water is designated for our communities,” Angerstein said. “It is likely intended to support unchecked development and sprawl in other parts of Texas, presumably in the DFW metroplex or Hill Country, areas that have failed to plan responsibly for their own water needs.”

In Texas, surface water belongs to the state, which grants rights to cities, farmers and businesses. Groundwater, however, is governed by the century-old “rule of capture,” giving landowners the right to pump unlimited amounts from beneath their land. Groundwater Conservation Districts can regulate well spacing and production to preserve aquifer health, but critics argue current regulations aren’t enough to protect rural communities.

Angerstein also raised concerns about corporate connections behind the permit application, linking Redtown Ranch Holdings to Conservation Equity Management Partners, Pine Bliss LLC, and 24th Parallel Holding—all allegedly tied to Dallas-based Hayman Capital Management, whose founder is Kyle Bass.

“We cannot support the wholesale extraction of rural water to satisfy distant, unplanned urban growth,” Angerstein said. “Especially when done through layered corporate structures, incomplete applications and without regard for the future of our communities.”

Opposition from local residents has been strong. Hundreds gathered in June to protest, warning that approval would jeopardize water security for generations of East Texans. “All of rural East Texas will be affected,” New Summerfield resident Jennifer Murphy-Vick said. “Our cities won’t have businesses and everyone will have to move away.”

Redtown Ranch representatives counter that their requested extraction is minimal compared to the aquifer’s total volume. “The State Water Development Board estimates 170 million acre-feet in Anderson County’s aquifer. Our request is less than one-tenth of one percent of that,” applicant Kyler Bass said.

Nevertheless, State Rep. Cody Harris, Chair of the House Natural Resources Committee, voiced strong opposition to the permit. “While we are working rigorously at the state level to propose and enact significant legislation that will help ease the ongoing burdens across the state, I will not stand by while attempts are made to drain my own district,” Harris said.