While most Americans worry about gas and heating oil prices, water rates have surged in the past dozen years, according to a USA TODAY study of 100 municipalities. Prices at least doubled in more than a quarter of the locations and even tripled in a few.
Read the full story at USA Today.
Higher prices have a way of grabbing attention, and many communities across Texas are raising rates to pay for new water supplies and to encourage conservation amid concerns that the lingering drought may portend a broader water crisis. Water experts say it is about time Texans placed more value on this irreplaceable natural resource, given the state’s rapid population growth and fickle weather. But raising rates often triggers public resistance in a state that is wary of too much government.
Full story at TexasTribune.org
The zebra mussel, a tiny, invasive creature that reproduces at astounding rates, is about to show more than a million North Texans just how big a pest it can be.
Though final details are still being ironed out, officials at the North Texas Municipal Water District say the wholesale cost of water for its 13 member cities and 41 nonmember customers will jump about 14 percent on Oct. 1 to begin paying off $350 million in bonds — with most of the money directly related to the troublesome mussel.
More info at dallasnews.com