BEXAR COUNTY, Texas – The future of a wastewater permit for the controversial Guajolote Ranch development in northwest Bexar County is in the hands of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).
The development would sit on approximately 1,100 acres, west of Scenic Loop and Babcock roads. It would also include a wastewater treatment plant.
Bexar County residents along Scenic Loop have been fighting against the proposed wastewater treatment plant for years.
Residents believe the wastewater treatment plant would make San Antonio’s drinking water unusable and harm the limestone aquifer system, the environment, and the city’s overall health.
TCEQ will ultimately decide the fate of the proposed wastewater permit as early as late August or possibly September.
Luke Metzger, with Environment Texas, a nonprofit organization, advised contacting Governor Greg Abbott’s office to express opposition to the wastewater treatment plant. He stated that Abbott appoints the TCEQ members.
“I think the residents fighting the permits seem to be doing everything they can to challenge it,” Metzger said, in part. “I recommend to the public that if you want your voice heard, it’s best to go to the elected official, not the appointed.”
Anyone, not just residents of northwest Bexar County, can contact Abbott’s office to express their concerns.
“There’s a public comment line for the governor’s office where you can leave a voicemail, kind of registering your opinion,” Metzger said. “That’s a really simple thing people could do. You could write a letter. But then, absolutely, if you contact the lieutenant governor, contact your state representative or state senator.”
A bipartisan group of state lawmakers from the Bexar County area penned a letter to TCEQ this week, rejecting the proposed wastewater permit.
Metzger also emphasized the importance of not forgetting the power that social media can have.
“A large developer has a lot of money and a lot of influence, and so they are quite powerful,” Metzger said. “And so then the question is, ‘Can the public build enough power to overcome the power of that corporation?’. And so I think social media is an important part of that because the more the word gets out, and in fact, I’ve seen this exact issue get a lot of traction online. A lot of people, not just in the San Antonio area, but all across Texas, are learning about this fight because of social media. And I think when an issue really catches on in a big way, you know, politicians can and will respond.”
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