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Thursday, Aug. 27, 1998
Nueces River floodplain braces for lake overflow
By JAMES A. SUYDAM
Staff WriterLake Corpus Christi may soon exceed its capacity as what's left of Tropical Storm Charley works its way into the Nueces River Basin.
And for residents of the Nueces River floodplain, that means it may just be time to roll up their pant legs and park the cars on high ground.
``It's OK now, but I'm watching the water levels rise, and I'll bet before it's over we'll see some flooding,'' said Elaine Stapp, who lives on River Lane in Northwest Corpus Christi, beside the Nueces River.
Jim Dodson, regional director for the Coastal Bend Division of the Nueces River Authority, said he expects the city's water supply to reach 50 percent of capacity within a week as a 200,000-acre-foot slug of water works its way to Lake Corpus Christi. The lake may exceed its 91-foot limit as a result, he said. Lake Corpus Christi was at 86.6 feet Thursday.
Since early July, the city's water supply has been below 40 percent as a regional drought sapped the water levels from Lake Corpus Christi and Choke Canyon Reservoir.
If the lake hits 91 feet, water will wash over the top gates, which remain open to keep the lake from filling even more. The lake is limited to 77 percent of capacity because of structural problems with Wesley Seale Dam. Otherwise, water could have been allowed to the 94-foot level.
Since it was built in 1958, the Wesley Seale Dam has slid four inches downstream, and a portion of the spillway has heaved up. Repairs to the dam are expected to cost about $26 million.
City Water Superintendent Ed Garana said there's no telling if Lake Corpus Christi will reach 91 feet.
``Right now, we're keeping a close eye on it, but it's really too early to tell how much of that water will make it into the system,'' Garana said.
Dodson said the city can expect to see 10 percent to 15 percent of the 200,000 acre-feet of water that's flowing through the Nueces River. Most of the water, he said, will be lost to evaporation and absorption as it flows toward the lake.
Already, however, the city has begun to release water from Lake Corpus Christi to meet the state's pass-through requirement for the month. An agreement with the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission requires that the city release 5,000 acre feet of water this month.
The state requires the freshwater releases into the bays and estuaries to balance their salinity levels and protect marine life.
But during months when no water flows into the system -- like last month -- the city isn't required to let loose any water, Garana said.
Garana said about 3,000 cubic acres of water has already been let loose.
``The river's starting to rise already, but it's nothing out of the ordinary right now,'' he said.
Garana said that if the lake levels appear to be nearing 91 feet, the releases will increase slowly. The city alerts residents in vulnerable downstream areas beforehand.
``We contact the people, and then we start easing water out to raise the river slowly below Lake Corpus Christi,'' Garana said. ``Yeah, it's going to start causing problems, but that way the people are aware -- we've talked to them -- and instead of coming up fast, it inches up slowly.''
Garana said he didn't know if his employees had contacted residents of the river basin south of the dam Thursday.
But Stapp, whose home by the river sits atop a 10-foot-high mound, said her daughter has already called her to tell her she could come and stay with her when the waters rise.
``She's a good kid,'' said Stapp, 65.Post your comments about local news eventsFront Page || Main Index || News || Business || Texas || South Texas Outdoors || Birdwatching || Sports || Entertainment || Selena || Education || South Texas Attractions || World Wide Web