General Manager of the San Antonio River Authority
In this issue’s Q&A, Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief, Dr. Todd Votteler, interviews Derek Boese, General Manager for the San Antonio River Authority.
On March 17, 2021, the San Antonio River Authority Board of Directors named Derek Boese as the river authority’s new General Manager. Boese began his tenure as the agency’s new General Manager on May 3, 2021. Before becoming the General Manager of the San Antonio River Authority, Boese was the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) for the Flood Protection Authority – East (FPA) and was responsible for the physical, operational, and financial integrity of the regional flood risk management system protecting the east bank of the greater New Orleans area, including over 575,000 people and nearly $80 billion of infrastructure. Boese served as the CAO since March 2017, overseeing the transition from three separate levee districts into one consolidated regional authority consisting of 250 people and a $60 million annual budget. He first served as the Executive Director of the East Jefferson Levee District for the FPA starting in 2015.
Prior to joining the FPA, Boese was an executive for two national engineering firms and led their regional operations from 2006 to 2015, focusing on flood protection and coastal restoration. During this time, he also served as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Chief of Staff for the Hurricane Protection Office.
Boese was an active-duty U.S. Army officer for 11 years and served combat tours in Iraq and Kuwait. He was the Commander of 299th Engineer Battalion, 4th Infantry Division during the initial ground invasion of Iraq in 2003.
What is the San Antonio River Authority and what is its mission?
The San Antonio River Authority was created in 1937 by the State of Texas to preserve, protect, and manage the resources and environment of the San Antonio River Basin. The agency’s mission is focused on safe, clean, and enjoyable creeks and rivers, from the headwaters of the San Antonio River in the highly urbanized City of San Antonio, which is the seventh largest city in the nation, through a largely agrarian area to its confluence with the Guadalupe River, where its freshwater inflows into San Antonio Bay support the endangered whooping crane.
A 12-member board of directors governs the agency with six directors elected from Bexar County and two each elected from Wilson, Karnes, and Goliad counties. The San Antonio River Authority’s staff of engineers, scientists, operations and maintenance crews, and professional and office personnel are all committed to innovative, adaptive, and strategic actions that holistically address concerns and challenges throughout the basin. By working collaboratively with other governments and the citizens we serve, the San Antonio River Authority can sustain and enrich the San Antonio River Basin’s ecosystem and the people and economies in the communities we serve.
The San Antonio River is the basin’s major river, flowing 240 miles from its headwaters in San Antonio, Bexar County, to its confluence with the Guadalupe River in Refugio County. Approximately 11 miles downriver of the confluence, the Guadalupe drains into the San Antonio Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.
What are the top priorities for the San Antonio River Authority?
Public safety through flood risk management is the San Antonio River Authority’s top priority. For more than 80 years, cities and counties throughout our district, as well as the federal government, have relied on our engineering and technical expertise in flood management and risk reduction. With the documented increases in intensity and destruction of major storms, ensuring that hydraulic and hydrology information, rainfall data, land use changes, floodplain maps, and watershed and capital improvement master plans stay current is the most cost-effective way to prepare and respond to the impact of these storms.
Improving the health of creeks and rivers is another primary purpose of the San Antonio River Authority. Since the 1970s, our scientific leadership and targeted efforts have resulted in reducing pollution and trash in our waterways and improving water quality throughout the basin. Because every citizen plays a critical role in the health of area creeks and rivers, we also conduct public education and outreach efforts to promote awareness and care for our natural environment by citizens of all ages. Our work to mitigate future threats to area waterways is more critical than ever as communities within the basin are growing rapidly — the population in the San Antonio region is anticipated to increase by over one million people by 2040. In a region where history and culture are linked to the region’s natural resources, protecting area creeks and rivers as we grow demonstrates stewardship for these vital resources.
Finally, enhancing appreciation and stewardship through recreation is an agency goal. The quality of life and health of citizens who live in the San Antonio River Basin can be improved through having recreational access along creeks and rivers. Over the past decade, the San Antonio River Authority has added nature-based recreational activities throughout the basin including hike and bike trails, paddling trails, picnic and camping areas, playgrounds, fishing, birdwatching, and even disc golf courses. These river-based recreational resources have attracted thousands of users to bask in the beauty and enjoyment of nature. With more access, people can develop a greater appreciation for the natural resources and quality of life benefits provided by the San Antonio River and its tributaries, which will lead to awareness of the issues affecting the river and promote increased preservation and conservation of these resources by individuals, businesses, and government.
What do you see as the most pressing water challenges for San Antonio River Authority’s district?
From the perspective of the San Antonio River Authority’s mission, flood mitigation and improving water quality in area creeks and rivers are the most pressing challenges in the district. Within the San Antonio River Basin, the City of San Antonio and Bexar County area are part of Flash Flood Alley, making this large metropolitan area one of the most flood-prone regions in North America. San Antonio has a long history of flooding and flash flooding, and many of these events unfortunately have included fatalities. Flash floods can occur within minutes to a few hours following a heavy rainfall event, and they cause most of the fatalities associated with flooding. In addition to the threats to life and property caused by urban floods, even small amounts of stormwater runoff can have a significantly negative impact on other issues such as water quality and creek and river erosion. Keeping lives, property, and our natural environment safe and secure from the devastating effects of major flooding is a top concern for the agency. The engineering staff of the San Antonio River Authority is meeting the challenge with comprehensive planning, precision protection, strategic partnerships, and community preparedness.
The 4,194 square miles of watershed that feed the San Antonio River contain diverse sources of contaminants that may affect water quality throughout the basin. However, data from San Antonio River Authority’s water quality monitoring indicates that pollutants carried by stormwater runoff are the greatest threat to stream health. A common challenge for urban areas around the world is that as more natural surfaces are paved and developed, less water percolates into the ground and more water instead goes over impervious surfaces and into storm drains, which can increase flash flooding dangers and erosion concerns as well as pick up pollutants and carry them to creeks and rivers. Stormwater runoff is especially problematic in urban areas during small rain events, where the high concentration of “first flush” pollutants can reduce the stream’s dissolved oxygen, resulting in fish kills and building concentrations of other containments in sediment. Additionally, the increased overland runoff and shorter times of concentration can have cascading effects throughout the watershed, including increases in annual runoff volumes, peak discharges, pollutant and sediment loads, frequency and magnitude of flooding, and surface erosion and gully formation, as well as destabilized stream banks, stream habitat degradation and diminished stream base flows. The team of aquatic biologists, water quality and stormwater scientists, and environmental investigators at the San Antonio River Authority work tirelessly to monitor, mitigate, and improve the health of the river along its 240-mile course.
What are the primary San Antonio River Authority programs designed to address these challenges?
The San Antonio River Authority prioritizes reducing flood risk and improving public safety. Our engineering expertise is continuing to advance community flood preparedness by fast-tracking the completion of vital flood risk management projects that will enhance community readiness and protection. In the upcoming fiscal year, we anticipate the completion of major projects such as Floodplain Remapping and Predictive Flood Modeling, projects that provide first responders with innovative tools to assist in the effort to avoid loss of life and protect property during heavy rain and flood events. When storms are forecasted, the sooner a community knows when and where the impact will be greatest, the faster warnings can be given, and actions taken to reduce threats to life and property. As these projects near their respective ends, projects such as Watershed Master Plans that use data produced through the Flood Plain Remapping efforts will move to the front burner. The Watershed Master Plan Integration project will update the agency’s Watershed Master Plan Viewer and will inform the community on stormwater quality management through the update of existing water quality models in Bexar, Wilson, Karnes, and Goliad Counties.
The San Antonio River Authority is dedicated to inspiring actions for healthy creeks and rivers which includes improving the health of creeks and rivers in the San Antonio River Basin. The agency’s scientific expertise is generating lasting and recognized improvements in the health of the San Antonio River and its tributaries by leading efforts to protect and enhance water quality and preserve and restore natural habitats and aquatic ecosystems. This includes projects such as engagement in the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s Clean Rivers Program and unique efforts like the reintroduction of four freshwater mussel species, which will make the San Antonio River the first waterbody in the state to have an assemblage of mussels reintroduced. The San Antonio River Authority is also advancing the use of sustainable development practices within our growing communities. This includes ongoing projects such as our annual stormwater rebate program and two new green stormwater infrastructure projects along Broadway (in Alamo Heights) and South Flores Street (in San Antonio). The agency is also spearheading a community-wide trash outreach initiative this year to raise awareness and encourage the public to do their part to keep area creeks and rivers clean by reducing litter.
Given the state’s focus on flooding, how will your previous experience in flood protection and mitigation be integrated into the San Antonio River Authority’s collaborative role with the Texas Water Development Board to develop the Region 12 portion of the state flood plan?
One of the major lessons learned post-Katrina was that water does not care about political boundaries. In fact, my prior agency was specifically created by the state legislature to ensure there was comprehensive and consistent regional hurricane protection for the largest metropolitan area in the state. We worked with all three parish (county) governments as well as the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Agency towards that goal.
I was also a member of the Region 8 Louisiana Watershed Initiative Steering Committee. After the 2016 flooding in the Baton Rouge region, the state established a series of entities focused on regional watershed planning and collaboration. While the initial focus of the watershed initiative has been to select projects funded with the $1.2 billion federal Community Development Block Grant Program grant for the Baton Rouge floods, the long-term intent is to ensure that flood defense projects, including those for drainage, river flooding, and hurricane protection are looked at regionally.
My past experience in New Orleans and our emergency response role there also adds additional perspective towards flood protection. In addition to the 192 miles of levees and floodwalls, our system also consisted of 252 land-based floodgates and eight navigational floodgates, which we would have to close in different tiers depending on the storm predictions and Mississippi River level. This required extensive coordination with parish governments, state agencies, the six class I railroads that came through New Orleans, the Port of New Orleans, U.S. Coast Guard, and USACE in the limited time available before tropical storm force winds began. While both the threat and the role of SARA are different here, emergency response planning and the extensive training and collaboration that accompany it apply anywhere.
Finally, my experience with USACE should provide valuable. As a former USACE active duty officer, Chief of Staff of the Corps’ Hurricane Protection Office, and then as the local sponsor of a $4 billion USACE flood defense system, I have both a comprehensive understanding of how USACE works and the accompanying relationships needed to support existing projects and establish new ones.