Austin Water is advancing plans for a $1.5 billion Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) project in Bastrop County, designed to store treated drinking water in the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer. If it proceeds, the project would represent Austin’s first large-scale treated-water storage undertaking — a central piece of its long-term water resilience strategy.
Key components & current status
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A three-year field study is the immediate next step. Engineers will test water quality, evaluate interaction between Austin’s treated water and the native groundwater, and assess implications for neighboring wells.
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Austin Water is building out a stakeholder engagement plan with Bastrop County residents and local governments. Part of that includes a collaborative testing agreement, and draft protections such as compensation if existing wells are affected.
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The aquifer was chosen because of its slow water movement in the selected zone and its relatively high native water quality. The initial target storage volume is about 60,000 acre-feet, with potential to expand to “hundreds of thousands of acre-feet” depending on study results and permitting.
Stakeholder concerns
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Local residents have raised issues around potential well interference, contamination (including concerns over “forever chemicals” in treated water), and long-term environmental impacts.
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Questions remain over transparency—how data will be shared, how compensation will be handled if private wells are impacted, and whether Austin intends to eventually request extraction rights in addition to storage.
Why this matters to utility and infrastructure leaders
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Drought resilience & supply diversification: ASR projects are increasingly attractive as upstream storage buffers, especially in water-stressed regions. The project is part of both Austin’s and Texas’s long-term water planning.
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Regulatory & scientific rigor: The three-year study phase signals an approach grounded in science and risk management. Utility leaders elsewhere can take note: stakeholder confidence often depends on rigorous monitoring and thorough environmental review.
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Cost, scale, and timeline: Such projects require large up-front capital, long permitting timelines, and sustained public engagement. The timeframe for full operations is projected for the early 2040s, so planning must align with long-term rate and regulatory planning cycles.
