Are Texas landowners allowed to lease their water to the Uvalde Water Project?
The Texas Legislature passed the Edwards Aquifer Authority Act in 1993 that established groundwater permits for the Edwards Aquifer. The act expressly recognizes a right of water permit owners to sell or lease their permits. Water permit owners are exercising their private property rights by leasing their permits to the Uvalde Water Project. Without the Uvalde Water Project, the permits could still be leased or sold for use in the San Antonio area under existing law without any of the economic benefits of the Uvalde Water Project for the Uvalde economy or the improved resource management for the Edwards Aquifer.
