Author: Robert Mace

Robert Mace is the Executive Director and Chief Water Policy Officer at The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment and a Professor of Practice in the Department of Geography at Texas State University. Robert has over 30 years of experience in hydrology, hydrogeology, stakeholder processes, and water policy, mostly in Texas.

think+water: Hunga Tonga‐Hunga Ha’apai, Greater Houston is still sinking, and the real age of the Balcones Fault Zone

This month, Dr. Robert E. Mace explores academic publications on the topics: examining the climate impact of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai eruption over a two-year period, utilizing satellite data to measure subsidence in Southeast Texas, and employing advanced dating methods to determine the formation date of the Balcones fault system in Texas.

outlook+water: Little change in drought and reservoir conditions, bye-bye El Niño, drought expected to remain

Drought conditions declined slightly to 25% of the state (D1–D4); statewide reservoir storage rose slightly to 77.6% full but is still about 7 percentage points below normal for this time of year. La Nada is here with a 65% chance of La Niña arriving in July-August-September. Drought is expected to remain and expand in the western half of the state, including most of the Hill Country.

think+water: Vista Ridge, aquifer storage and recovery in New Braunfels, and a rollercoaster of land deformation in the Delaware Basin of West Texas

This month, Dr. Robert E. Mace explores academic publications on the topics of analyzing the impact of the Vista Ridge project on water levels in Lee County, identifying water quality issues for aquifer storage and recovery projects, and examining how oil production and wastewater injection in the Delaware Basin lead to significant ground surface changes, including uplift, subsidence, and faulting.

outlook+water: Drought slightly decreases but expected to persist and expand, El Niño fading, and active hurricane season predicted

Drought conditions declined to 26% of the state (D1–D4); statewide reservoir storage rose to 77.5% full but still about seven percentage points below normal for this time of year. La Nada has an ~80% chance of arriving in April-May-June, with a 70% chance of La Niña in July-August-September. Drought is expected to remain and expand in the western half of the state, including most of the Hill Country.