Bill Text: TX HB2334 | 2013-2014 | 83rd Legislature | Comm Sub

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Bill Title: Relating to the regulation, development, and treatment of brackish and marine water.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 6-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-05-09 - Placed on General State Calendar [HB2334 Detail]

Download: Texas-2013-HB2334-Comm_Sub.html

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83R24556 SLB-F
By: Callegari, Lucio III, Larson, et al. H.B. No. 2334
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2334:
By: Keffer C.S.H.B. No. 2334

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the regulation, development, and treatment of brackish
and marine water.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. (a) With this state facing an ongoing drought,
continuing population growth, and the need to remain economically
competitive, this state must secure and develop plentiful and
cost-effective water supplies to meet the ever-increasing demand
for water. The purpose of this Act is not to hinder conservation
efforts, because such efforts help reduce the need for new sources
of water, or to hinder current development of fresh groundwater,
fresh surface water, water reclamation, or aquifer storage and
recovery. However, this state must explore every water resource in
order to balance the supply and demand for water, one of the most
precious resources of this state.
(b) Brackish groundwater and marine seawater are
potentially new sources of public drinking water for this state.
This state has an estimated 880 trillion gallons of brackish
groundwater and access to over 600 quadrillion gallons of marine
seawater from the Gulf of Mexico. The purpose of this Act is to
streamline the process and reduce the cost and regulation of
desalination.
SECTION 2. Section 11.085, Water Code, is amended by adding
Subsection (w) to read as follows:
(w) This section does not apply to a transfer of water that
has been diverted from the Gulf of Mexico to a location in a river
basin or coastal basin.
SECTION 3. Section 11.121, Water Code, is amended to read as
follows:
Sec. 11.121. PERMIT REQUIRED. Except as provided in
Sections 11.142, 11.1421, [and] 11.1422, and 11.1423 [of this
code], no person may appropriate any state water or begin
construction of any work designed for the storage, taking, or
diversion of water without first obtaining a permit from the
commission to make the appropriation.
SECTION 4. Section 11.1311, Water Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
follows:
(b) The board may transfer interests in a permit issued
under Subsection (a) [this section] to a municipality, river
authority, other political subdivision, or water supply
corporation organized under Chapter 67 as otherwise provided by
law.
(b-1) In this subsection, "marine seawater" has the meaning
assigned by Section 11.1423, and "brackish water" means water that
contains a total dissolved solids concentration of more than 1,000
milligrams per liter and is not marine seawater. On submission of an
application to the commission, the commission shall issue without a
hearing a permit to use the bed and banks of any flowing natural
stream in the state to convey marine seawater or brackish water.
The commission shall adopt rules to implement a procedure for
application for a permit to convey marine seawater or brackish
water consistent with this subsection. A flowing natural stream
does not include impounded water. The commission shall provide
notice and an opportunity for hearing for an application for a
permit to convey marine seawater or brackish water into or through a
lake, reservoir, or other impoundment.
SECTION 5. Subchapter D, Chapter 11, Water Code, is amended
by adding Section 11.1423 to read as follows:
Sec. 11.1423. PERMIT EXEMPTION FOR USE BY WATER SUPPLY
ENTITY OF MARINE SEAWATER. (a) In this section:
(1) "Marine seawater" means water that contains a
total dissolved solids concentration based on a yearly average of
samples taken at the water source of more than 10,000 milligrams per
liter that is derived from the Gulf of Mexico or an adjacent bay,
estuary, or arm of the Gulf of Mexico.
(2) "Water supply entity" includes:
(A) a retail public utility as defined by Section
13.002;
(B) a wholesale water supplier; or
(C) an irrigation district operating under
Chapter 58.
(b) Without obtaining a permit, a water supply entity may
use for any beneficial purpose state water that consists of marine
seawater.
(c) A water supply entity must treat marine seawater so that
it meets the water quality level of the receiving stream before the
entity may put the water into a stream under an authorization
granted under Section 11.042.
(d) This section does not prohibit a water supply entity
from conveying water under this section in any other manner
authorized by law, including through the use of facilities owned or
operated by the state if authorized by the state.
SECTION 6. Section 16.060, Water Code, is amended to read as
follows:
Sec. 16.060. DESALINATION STUDIES AND RESEARCH. (a) In
this section, "inland desalination project" means a desalination
project the primary purpose of which is the development of new
drinking water. The term does not include the reuse, recycling, or
disposal of wastewater.
(b) The board shall undertake or participate in research,
feasibility and facility planning studies, investigations, and
surveys [as it considers] necessary to further the development of
cost-effective water supplies from inland and seawater
desalination in the state.
(c) [(b)] The board shall prepare an annual [a biennial]
progress report on the implementation of inland and seawater
desalination activities in the state and shall submit it to the
governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house of
representatives not later than December 1 of each [even-numbered]
year. The report shall include:
(1) results of the board's studies and activities
relative to inland and seawater desalination during the preceding
year [biennium];
(2) identification and evaluation of research,
regulatory, technical, and financial impediments to the
implementation of inland and seawater desalination projects;
(3) evaluation of the role the state should play in
furthering the development of inland and [large-scale] seawater
desalination projects in the state; [and]
(4) the anticipated appropriation from general
revenues necessary to continue investigating water desalination
activities in the state during the next biennium; and
(5) information regarding state participation in
public-private partnerships to advance research efforts, implement
pilot projects, and develop new technologies related to:
(A) water transport;
(B) brine disposal;
(C) pretreatment of brackish water and marine
seawater; and
(D) innovative concentrate management
strategies.
(d) [(c)] The board shall actively pursue federal sources
of funding for inland and seawater desalination projects in the
state.
(e) In preparing the report described by Subsection (c), the
board shall incorporate input from water utilities, water
providers, municipalities, and other public or private entities
that have an interest in developing and implementing inland or
seawater desalination projects.
(f) The board shall coordinate with the Texas Center for
Innovative Desalination Technology and any other entity created by
the state to study, promote, facilitate, or improve the
development, financing, implementation, or enhancement of inland
or seawater desalination technology or projects.
(g) The board shall coordinate with each agency identified
in the report to provide assistance with applicable regulatory
requirements to improve implementation of inland or seawater
desalination technology or projects.
SECTION 7. Section 341.001, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subdivisions (1-a), (2-a), and (4-a) to read as
follows:
(1-a) "Brackish water" means water that contains a
total dissolved solids concentration of more than 1,000 milligrams
per liter. The term does not include marine seawater.
(2-a) "Desalination facility" means a facility used
for the treatment of brackish water or marine seawater to remove
dissolved mineral salts and other dissolved solids.
(4-a) "Marine seawater" means water that contains a
total dissolved solids concentration based on a yearly average of
samples taken at the water source of more than 10,000 milligrams per
liter that is derived from the Gulf of Mexico or an adjacent bay,
estuary, or arm of the Gulf of Mexico.
SECTION 8. Subchapter C, Chapter 341, Health and Safety
Code, is amended by adding Section 341.0359 to read as follows:
Sec. 341.0359. DESALINATION OF WATER FOR DRINKING WATER.
(a) This section applies only to a desalination facility that is
intended to produce water for the public drinking water supply.
This section does not apply to a desalination facility used to
produce nonpotable water.
(b) The commission shall adopt rules to:
(1) allow water treated by a desalination facility to
be used as public drinking water; and
(2) ensure that water treated by a desalination
facility meets the requirements of Section 341.031 and rules
adopted under that section.
(c) A person may not begin construction of a desalination
facility unless the commission approves in writing the plans and
specifications for the facility.
(d) A person may not begin construction of a desalination
facility that treats brackish water for the purpose of removing
secondary drinking water contaminants unless the commission
approves in writing a report containing:
(1) a computer model acceptable to the commission;
(2) a pilot study with a minimum 40-day run duration
without treatment intervention to meet federal and state safe
drinking water standards;
(3) data from a similar system installed at another
brackish water desalination facility that treats source water of a
similar or lower quality; or
(4) a full-scale verification study with a minimum
40-day run duration without treatment intervention to meet federal
and state safe drinking water standards.
(e) A person may not begin construction of a desalination
facility that treats brackish water for the purpose of removing
primary drinking water contaminants unless the commission approves
in writing a report containing:
(1) a computer model acceptable to the commission;
(2) a pilot study with a minimum 40-day run duration
without treatment intervention to meet federal and state safe
drinking water standards;
(3) data from a similar system installed at another
brackish water desalination facility that treats source water of a
similar or lower quality; or
(4) a full-scale verification study with a minimum
40-day run duration without treatment intervention to meet federal
and state safe drinking water standards.
(f) A person may not begin construction of a desalination
facility that treats marine seawater unless the commission approves
in writing a report containing:
(1) a computer model acceptable to the commission;
(2) a pilot study with a minimum 40-day run duration
without treatment intervention to meet federal and state safe
drinking water standards;
(3) data from a similar system installed at another
marine seawater desalination facility that treats source water of a
similar or lower quality; or
(4) a full-scale verification study with a minimum
40-day run duration without treatment intervention to meet federal
and state safe drinking water standards.
(g) Not later than the 100th day after the date the
commission receives the report for a proposed desalination
facility, the commission shall review the report and issue an
exception response letter that may contain conditions for approval.
(h) Not later than the 60th day after the date the
commission receives the plans and specifications for a proposed
desalination facility, the commission shall review the plans and
specifications and issue a response letter that may contain
conditions for approval.
(i) A person violates this section if the person fails to
meet a condition for approval in a letter issued to the person under
Subsection (g) or (h).
SECTION 9. Chapter 111, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subchapter J to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER J. TEXAS CENTER FOR INNOVATIVE
DESALINATION TECHNOLOGY
Sec. 111.131. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Boards" means the board of regents of the
University of Houston System and the board of regents of The
University of Texas System.
(2) "Center" means the Texas Center for Innovative
Desalination Technology established under this subchapter.
Sec. 111.132. ESTABLISHMENT. (a) The Texas Center for
Innovative Desalination Technology is established as a partnership
between the University of Houston, The University of Texas at
Brownsville, and The University of Texas at El Paso.
(b) The organization, control, and management of the center
are vested in the boards, and the respective institutions shall
execute a memorandum of understanding for that purpose.
(c) The center shall be hosted by the University of
Houston's Cullen College of Engineering, The University of Texas at
Brownsville's College of Science, Mathematics, and Technology, and
The University of Texas at El Paso's Center for Inland Desalination
Systems. Participation in the center's activities shall be open to
any faculty or staff member of each host university who is an active
researcher in the field of water desalination, engineering,
hydrology, biology, water supply development, or energy
efficiency, or in another relevant field as determined by the
boards.
Sec. 111.133. PURPOSE. The center is created to:
(1) promote interdisciplinary research, education,
and training for the development of state-of-the-art products,
materials, systems, and technologies designed for the desalination
of seawater from the Gulf of Mexico and brackish water within
surface and groundwater resources throughout the state; and
(2) develop cost-effective, energy-efficient, and
environmentally sound water desalination, brine disposal, and
water conveyance technologies that can enhance the potential for
desalinated water to contribute toward the state's long-term water
portfolio.
Sec. 111.134. POWERS AND DUTIES. The center shall:
(1) collaborate with appropriate international,
federal, state, and local agencies and private business or
nonprofit entities as necessary to develop innovative desalination
technologies;
(2) research and develop innovative seawater and
brackish water desalination technologies, including pretreatment
technologies and improvements, that are energy efficient and cost
effective, minimize environmental impacts, and offer long-term
water supply solutions for the state;
(3) research and develop brine disposal and reuse
methods and technologies;
(4) research and develop water conveyance systems and
technologies that may be used to transport desalinated water to
target use populations;
(5) develop test facilities for evaluating the
performance of new products, materials, or techniques;
(6) develop specifications and standards for products
used for desalinating water, conveying water, and disposing of
brine;
(7) provide public information, education, and
outreach regarding desalination technologies and appropriate uses
and conservation methods for desalinated water; and
(8) provide data, recommendations, and any other
information necessary relating to desalination for local,
regional, or statewide water planning programs and processes.
Sec. 111.135. COLLABORATION WITH OTHER ENTITIES. The
University of Houston, The University of Texas at Brownsville, and
The University of Texas at El Paso shall encourage public and
private entities to participate in or support the operation of the
center and may enter into an agreement with any public or private
entity for that purpose. An agreement may allow the center to
provide information, services, or other assistance to an entity in
exchange for the entity's participation or support.
Sec. 111.136. GIFTS AND GRANTS. The boards may solicit,
accept, and administer gifts and grants from any public or private
source for the purposes of the center.
Sec. 111.137. PERSONNEL. The boards may employ personnel
for the center as necessary.
Sec. 111.138. EXPIRATION. This subchapter expires
September 1, 2023.
SECTION 10. This Act takes effect immediately if it
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2013.