Victoria County Groundwater Conservation District

Transcription

1 Directors: Mark Meek President Jerry Hroch Vice-President Barbara Dietzel Secretary Thurman Clements Kenneth Eller THE STATE OF TEXAS VICTORIA COUNTY The Board of Directors' Meeting and Permit Hearings convened at the Dr. Pattie Dodson Health Center, 2805 N. Navarro St., Room 108, Victoria, Victoria County, Texas, on December 19, 2014 at 9:00AM. Meeting Attendance: Precinct 1: Precinct 2: Precinct 3: Precinct 4: At Large: General Manager: Legal Counsel: Agenda Items - Mr. Jerry Hroch, Vice President Mr. Thurman Clements, Jr., Director Mrs. Barbara Dietzel, Secretary Mr. Mark Meek, President Mr. Kenneth Eller, Director Mr. Timothy Andruss Mr. James Allison Absent Present Present Present Present Present Absent 1. Call to order and welcome guests. Meeting Discussion: Mr. Meek called the meeting to order at 9:00 AM. The following guest was present: Mr. Ned Pyatt. 2. Public Comment. 3. Permit hearing and consideration of, including action on, permit applications - Mr. John A. Roberts for Texas Department of Transportation seek approval of a production permit under application AVW for well GW validating and authorizing historic groundwater production for public water system uses. The subject well is located at the Texas Department of Transportation's rest stop on the southbound side of U.S. Highway 59 South located near the intersection of U.S. Hwy. 59 South and Treasure Oaks Rd., Victoria County, Texas. The requested production amount is 5.48 acre-feet per year. VCGCD Minutes -December 19, 2014 Page 1 of 9

2 Mr. Meek opened the permit hearing at 9:00 AM. Meeting Discussion: Mr. And russ explained that Mr. Roberts for Texas Department of Transportation had submitted an administratively complete application with evidence, comprised of contemporaneous business records, supporting the validation of 5.48 acre-feet per year for public water system uses prior to year The application included an Affidavit of Past Production. Public Comment: None. Board Action: Mr. Clements moved to close the permit hearing at 9:03AM. At Large: Mr. Kenneth Eller, Director Aye Board Action: Mr. Eller moved to authorize the general manager to issue a historic use validation permit to Texas Department of Transportation for 5.48 acre-feet per year for public water system uses in accordance with the Rules of the District. Mr. Clements seconded the motion. The following vote was made. At Large: Mr. Kenneth Eller, Director Aye 4. Permit hearing and consideration of, including action on, permit applications - Mr. John A. Roberts for Texas Department of Transportation seek approval of a production permit under application AVW for well GW validating and authorizing historic groundwater production for public water system uses. The subject well is located at the Texas Department of Transportation's rest stop on the northbound side of U.S. Highway 59 South located near the intersection of U.S. Hwy. 59 South and Garcia's Creek Rd., Victoria County, Texas. The requested production amount is 2.7acre-feet per year. Mr. Meek opened the permit hearing at 9:00 AM. Meeting Discussion: Mr. And russ explained that Mr. Roberts for Texas Department of Transportation had submitted an administratively complete application with evidence, comprised of contemporaneous business records, VCGCD Minutes -December 19, 2014 Page 2 of 9

3 supporting the validation of 2.7 acre-feet per year for public water system uses prior to year The application included an Affidavit of Past Production. Public Comment: None. Board Action: Mr. Clements moved to close the permit hearing at 9:03AM. At Large: Mr. Kenneth Eller, Director Aye Board Action: Mr. Eller moved to authorize the general manager to issue a historic use validation permit to Texas Department of Transportation for 2.7 acrefeet per year for public water system uses in accordance with the Rules of the District. Mr. Clements seconded the motion. The following vote was made. At Large: Mr. Kenneth Eller, Director Aye 5. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to post-election procedures including Statements of Elected Officer and Oaths of Office. 6. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to State Auditor's request for information related to the implementation of status of audit recommendations. Management Discussion: Mr. Andruss explained that the District had received correspondence from the State Auditor's Office requesting an update of the status (e.g., Fully Implemented, Substantially Implemented, Incomplete/Ongoing, Not Implemented) regarding the recommendations for the audit of the District (Report No ) that was released in April Below is a summary of the District's status, as of December 18, 2014, regarding the recommendations of the State Auditor's Office for the audit released on April 2012: VCGCD Minutes -December 19, 2014 Page 3 of 9

4 Finding 1 N, Recommendation 1: The Victoria County Groundwater Conservation District should continue to comply with its groundwater management plan objectives to: Promote recharge enhancement within the district each year and summarize and report the number of activities performed each year in its annual report to the board of directors; Promote brush control within the district each year and summarize and report on the related activities and the number of activities performed each year in its annual report to the board of directors. Current Implementation Status: Fully Implemented. The Victoria County Groundwater Conservation District continues to comply with its groundwater management plan objectives, as revised in August 2013, related to addressing conservation, rainwater harvesting, or brush control by summarizing within the annual report the activities directly related to conservation, rainwater harvesting or brush control. Finding 2N, Recommendation 1: The Victoria County Groundwater Conservation District should maintain policies and procedures as required by Texas Water Code, Section , for management of information, including: Budgets for use in planning and controlling costs; an audit and finance committee of the board; and uniform reporting requirements. Current Implementation Status: Fully implemented. The Victoria County Groundwater Conservation District maintains policies and procedures as required by Texas Water Code, Section , for management of information, including: budgets for use in planning and controlling costs; an audit and finance committee of the board; and uniform reporting requirements. The Victoria County Groundwater Conservation District Board of Directors most recently considered and adopted the by-laws addressing policies and procedures as required by Texas Water Code, Section , in September Board Action: Mr. Clements moved to authorize the general manager to submit the summary of the District's status, as of December 18, 2014, regarding the recommendations of the State Auditor's Office for the audit released on April 2012 to the State Auditor's Office. At Large: Kenneth Eller Aye 7. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to production permit renewals. VCGCD Minutes -December 19, 2014 Page 4 of 9

5 Meeting Discussion: Mr. And russ explained that the District had not received a production permit renewal application in association with operating permit OP which expires on January 8, Consideration of and possible action on matters related to disposal and injection wells. Meeting Discussion: Mr. Andruss explained that PBW continued to monitor injection wells within Victoria County. Mr. Wickham failed to provide an evaluation and assessment, as promised, for a injection well application submitted by Pegasus Operating, Placedo Field, Roos Lease, Well #34, Railroad Commission Tracking No , API No at the November 21, 2014 Board of Director's meeting. Based on the low risk assessment assigned by Mr. Wickham and the impact a delayed decision by VCGCD would have on the applicant, the protest to this well was withdrawn. 9. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to complaints, investigations, violations, and enforcement actions. Meeting Discussion: Mr. Andruss explained that the District continued to work on two investigations. Mr. And russ explained that the District had received information from the County regarding its arrangement with the Fordtran Volunteer Fire Department. This information will be forwarded to Mr. Allison for his review. Mr. And russ explained that the District had re-sampled Mr. Van Zandt's well for the presence of bacteria. The results have not been received by the District. The District is attempting to gain access to the well located on the complaint property. 10. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to GMA 15 Desired Future Conditions and possible proposals for new or amended DFC statements. Meeting Discussion: Mr. And russ explained that the next meeting of GMA 15 is scheduled for January 8, VCGCD Minutes -December 19, 2014 Page 5 of 9

6 11. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to aquifer monitoring efforts and activities in the District. Meeting Discussion: Mr. Andruss explained that according to the NOAA drought map for December 2014, Victoria County continues to experience drought conditions with portions of experiencing severe drought. Meeting Discussion: Mr. Andruss explained that during the FY14-15 budget development process, the Board expressed interest in investigating improvements related to the District use of GIS. At the time, the District would investigate an arrangement with USGS which proved to be cost prohibitive. The District has been in discussion with Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc. regarding the same matter. ESRI has provided a Rough Order of Magnitude proposal relate to those discussions. The underlying proposal is to have ESRI host and manage a GIS environment as a cloud- based service for the District that would improve the accessibility to the GIS data, improve backup and recovery abilities, and improve the scalability of the system in general. The ROM estimate is $1,255 per month access fee and a $9,000 one-time configuration fee. 12. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to the management goals, objectives and performance standards of the District's management plan. Meeting Discussion: Mr. And russ explained that for several years, the District had sponsored the RAP WaterWise program for 4th grade students at schools located outside the limits of the City of Victoria. The District had received a quote for FY14-15 for $8, for the enrollment of 242 participants. Board Action: Mr. Clements moved to agree to sponsor the WaterWise Program as proposed in RAP Quote # and authorize the General Manager to pay for the related services up to an amount not to exceed $8, At Large: Kenneth Eller Aye 13. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to office administration, personnel and staffing, organization, and administrative policies. VCGCD Minutes -December 19, 2014 Page 6 of 9

7 14. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to the annual budget of the District. 15. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to the minutes of previous meetings. Meeting Discussion: Mr. And russ explained that the draft minutes for the meeting held on November 21, 2014 had not been fully reviewed and were not prepared for consideration by the Board. 16. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to the financial reports of the District. Board Action: Mr. Eller moved to accept and approve the financial records for November 2014, Financial Compilation Statements for September 2014, Draft Financial Compilation Statements for October 2014, and Investment Report for September 30, Mr. Clements seconded the motion. The following vote was made. At Large: Kenneth Eller Aye 17. Consideration of and possible action on matters related to the bills and invoices of the District. Meeting Discussion: Mr. And russ explained that the services and products referenced by the following invoices and bills had been delivered to the District. Payment of certain invoices and bills is appropriate. VCGCD Minutes -December 19, 2014 Page 7 of 9

8 Board Action: Mr. Clements moved to authorize the general manager to pay the referenced invoices from the appropriate accounts. INV #12740; File #426.02: -Allison, Bass & Magee, LLP- $3, INV Date: 12/1/2014- Victoria Central Appraisal District- $8, INV #1876- Catherine Ozment, CPA PLLC- $ INV #1900- Catherine Ozment, CPA PLLC- $75.00 INV #3161-T Pastor, Behling & Wheeler, LLC- $ INV #3161-T Pastor, Behling & Wheeler, LLC- $3,355.00; and to authorize the general manager to pay the referenced invoices from the appropriate accounts contingent on the District receiving the associated funds from Pecan Valley GCD from the joint funding account: INV # INTERA- $1, INV # INTERA- $ INV # INTERA- $ At Large: Kenneth Eller Aye 18. Consideration of General Manager's report. Meeting Discussion: The next meeting of the VCGCD Board of Directors is scheduled for January 16, Consideration of and possible action on matters related to legal counsel report. 20. Adjourn. Board Action: Mr. Clements moved to adjourn the meeting at 9:54AM. At Large: Mr. Kenneth Eller, Director Aye VCGCD Minutes -December 19, 2014 Page 8 of 9

9 U.S. Drought Monitor Texas December 16, 2014 (Released Thursday, Dec. 18, 2014) Valid 7 a.m. EST Drought Conditions (Percent Area) None I Current I I I I I 2.57 Last Week 1219/ Months Ago 9/ I I I I I I I I I Start of Calendar Year I I I I I 5.82 I Start of Water Year I I I I I I /30/2014 One Year Ago 12117/ I I I Intensity: DO Abnormally Dry D1 Moderate Drought D3 Extreme Drought D4 Exceptional Drought D2 Severe Drought The Drought Monitor focuses on broad-scale conditions. Local conditions may vary. See accompanying text summary for forecast statements. Author: David Miskus NOAAINWS/NCEPICPC USDA =----

10 Prepared by: Barbara Dietzel, Board Secretary. Official THE ABOVE AND FOREGOING MINUTES WERE READ AND APPROVED ON THIS Director of the ATTEST: VCGCD Minutes -December 19, 2014 Page 9 of 9