Feeling pressure over water, Fulshear eyes moratorium
Fulshear city officials are racing to solve stubborn water problems after residents facing persistently low water pressure started a petition drive calling for a moratorium on new residential and commercial development.
Mayor Aaron Groff said city staff are working “round the clock” to find the root cause of the water system’s pressure fluctuations.
Low pressure prompted a boil water notice on Aug. 21, and last week a low water pressure alert was issued for the Cross Creek Ranch neighborhood.
Groff said there is a mechanism by which the city could halt development, but the situation in Fulshear does not currently meet the criteria to do so.
“However, the city continues to investigate the possibility of a moratorium, and we have placed the item on our Sept. 19 agenda,” he said.
Lexi Giannetto, a resident of Fulbrook on Fulshear Creek, said she and her neighbors frequently experienced water pressure dropping as low as 8 pounds per square inch, or PSI, during the summer.
Public water systems are required to maintain a minimum water pressure of 35 PSI under normal conditions and 20 PSI during emergencies, according to Richard Weatherly, vice president of the city’s engineering consultant Freese and Nichols, who spoke at a city council meeting last week.
Giannetto also noticed water at a local school, where she volunteers, emitting a strong hydrogen sulfide smell.
“I was helping children wash their hands after doing an art project, and this sulfur smell coming out of it was so rotten and nasty that the kids were gagging,” she said.
People in her neighborhood have complained about water that is yellowish or reddish in color, Giannetto said. She has installed a filter at her own house.
Randy Connors moved with his wife to Fulshear’s Del Webb
neighborhood in May and quickly noticed the water pressure in their new home was lower. As drought conditions worsened, the water problems escalated, Connors said.
When water pressure falls below Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s required minimum of 20 PSI, it is possible for contaminants to get into the water system.
“I don’t pretend to be an engineer, but this is dangerous from a health and safety standpoint because our potable water and fire system are the same water system,” said Connors. “Until more (water) supply comes online, the city cannot stand any more development.”
Connors initiated a petition, calling upon the city to halt new construction until the water supply issue is addressed.
The local government code states the city must show evidence further development would extend the need beyond the estimated capacity of existing public facilities, such as water supply.
“Unfortunately, this current condition doesn’t meet the definitions spelled out in that section because the criteria is ‘capacity,’” Groff said in an email.
“The system is designed to handle the peak flows with the current number of connections,” he said.
Groff said the city has identified and fixed multiple issues causing low water pressure in some parts of the city and is continuing to investigate areas with ongoing issues.
Fulshear relies on two water systems: the Downtown Water System, which has three wells, and the Cross Creek Ranch Water System, equipped with four wells. City staff found that one well in each system was temporarily unavailable due to repairs, and recurring power outages were also a prevalent issue. Additionally, water demand surged during summer, with some residential customers consuming as much as 40,000 gallons per month.
“The pressure drops are most dramatic during peak use — early morning hours,” Groff said. “City staff and contractors … are working with our largest consumers to adjust water usage during that period. They are working to use interconnects with other systems when appropriate. They are encouraging all users to adjust watering times.”
The city’s longer-term improvement plans include installation of new water plants and storage tanks over the next two years, as well as a water line on Katy Fulshear and Huggins, expected to be in service by this time next year.
Last week, a low water pressure issue in Cross Creek Ranch was fixed the next morning, triggering a stream of Facebook comments from Fulshear residents accusing the city of giving preferential treatment to Cross Creek Ranch while other neighborhoods continued to grapple with water supply challenges.
“I told the city our water pressure was 8 PSI, and they said it was fine,” Giannetto said in a phone interview.
Giannetto said while the city has presented solutions that will take effect next year, she hasn’t seen proposed remedies to address the current issues.
For now, both Giannetto and Connors said they had to coordinate their water usage because it wasn’t possible to run a shower, dishwasher, and washing machine concurrently.
“Truly, both engineers and operators are working around the clock to figure out what’s happening, because it shouldn’t be,” Groff said.