In a move to bolster the city's water distribution infrastructure, the Austin City Council has greenlit a hefty $3 million contract with HDR Engineering Inc. The engineering firm is tasked with conducting a comprehensive study to scout a new location for an additional pump station and reservoir in Southwest Austin, a partner to the Davis Lane Pump Station currently operating at the brink of its capacity.
On the busiest of days, the Davis Lane station is pushed to 75 percent effective capacity, according to Austin Water. This marks the highest level of use among the utility's distribution stations, signaling an urgent need for system expansion and redundancy. The Austin Monitor reports the additional facility would relieve the existing strain on Davis Lane, thus enhancing the overall resilience of the city's water delivery network.
The requirement for the study was underscored by the crippling Winter Storm Uri back in 2021 that left around half of Texans, including those in far South and Southwest Austin, without clean drinking water — some for up to seven days. Issues at the Ullrich water treatment plant were identified as culprits, with a review determining such infrastructure failures played a central role in multiple high-profile incidents over several years.
Three years post-freeze, HDR Engineering's new study will incorporate environmental considerations in locating the potential second pump station in Southwest Austin. District 8 Council Member Paige Ellis expressed satisfaction with the project's progression, recalling the 2021 ordeal where residents in her apartment complex and others resorted to bottled water, as reported by Austin Monitor.
Despite the overwhelming council support, not everyone agreed with the direction of the pump station study. Bill Bunch, executive director of Save Our Springs Alliance, voiced strong opposition. "I'm opposed to funding the southwest pressure zone study. This is business as usual. We should not be thinking about having to expand our water pipes. We should be facing reality. … Our water future is not guaranteed by a 100-year contract. We've got to make do with the water we have. The idea that we're going to expand pipes and be pushing obscene amounts of more water is absurd," Bunch stated.
