KWES NewsWest 9 / Midland, Odessa, Big Spring, TX: newswest9.com | City of Pecos Looking to Create Water District

City of Pecos Looking to Create Water District

By: Sarah Snyder
NewsWest 9

PECOS - Several West Texas counties may soon be coming together to protect one of our most valuable resources - water. Monday night, the first of those discussions happened in Pecos.

"It becomes a real hot button topic," Reeves County Extension Agent, Logan Lair, said. "People start drawing their swords out when you mention water. We've got to come together as a community and decide how we're going to manage that."

Texas Agrilife says a water district would insure that landowners could continue to pump water from their property but limit anyone else from coming in and taking that water.

"We don't have the water district," Pecos Public Works Director, Edgardo Madrid, said. "We don't have the control over it. That's why we would like to see if we can start the process of getting this water district and in the near future have a little bit more control."

On Monday night, Pecos city leaders made a unanimous decision to initiate discussions among Reeves, Ward, and Loving counties and all the cities inside - hoping to find a way to protect their water rights.

"The Mayor has been working actively on pursuing this," Madrid said. "From the city - he's the lead person on this. I'm hoping we can continue at this pace and get this done as soon as possible."

By having a water district, Texas Agrilife says they'll have more research to know how big the supply is and the overall quality. Now it's up to the cities and counties to decide how they'll pay for the district - either through taxes or fees each time a well is drilled.