New water tank installed to help during times of drought
AUSTIN, Texas (FOX 7 Austin) - A thick blanket of fog obscured a clear view Friday of a new water tank that is located along Hamilton Pool Road. It's just north of Highway 12, near the Deer Creek Ranch subdivision.
Work crews spent the morning connecting the tank to the West Travis County Public Utility Agency supply system. It feeds three communities.
Capacity at the site is expanding from just over 200,000 gallons to nearly 700,000 gallons, according to Operations Manager Trey Cantu. "It's going to address both the existing needs, and also future growth."
Residents were warned a drop in water pressure was possible during the connection process.
Matt Lowe didn't mind a brief service interruption because of what it represents. "The satisfaction of having water during the drought season is comforting for sure,” said Lowe.
Lowe went through the drought years when a lot of Hill Country residents had to truck in water. "It was a hassle it wasn't something that you want to do but we made it through let's just hope it doesn't happen again," said Lowe.
Utility managers are anticipating even more growth, which is why a 750,000 gallon tank is being built along Highway 290. It should be online by the summer. "There's a lot of growth, there's a lot of development, there is a lot of consumption. We hope the additional 750,000 gallons, the additional 400,000 gallons and our existing water storage is going to add to those needs there's definite going to be some useful water capacity that will help add to the peak demand usage,” said Cantu.
Utility officials still want to remind residence the new water tanks are not silver bullets when it comes to a major drought. Conservation measures may still be required during the hot summer months.
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