Amid growing pressure on one of the nation’s most critical resources, Texas Tech’s Davis College of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources and the Texas Section of the American Water Works Association (TAWWA) this month convened the second annual Agricultural Water Sustainability Summit at the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center.
“The Davis College is thrilled to partner with Texas American Water Works Association to bring attention to this critical issue,” said Erica Irlbeck, Davis College Associate Dean for Outreach & Engagement. “All Texans want to ensure enough water for the future, and this summit gets the agricultural and municipal industries in the same room to discuss the topic.”
The two-day (Oct. 14-15) event aimed to bridge a divide between agricultural and urban water users as Texas and much of the western U.S. faces persistent drought and mounting demand. Organizers said this year’s summit ranged from municipal drought planning to real time water monitoring for cattle, and climate conscious sorghum to a golf course water use panel.
Conference speakers included Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Chairwoman Brooke Paup and Texas Sen. Charles Perry (R-District 28). Additionally, Robert Mace, executive director of the Meadows Center for Water & the Environment at Texas State University; John Nielsen-Gammon, a professor of meteorology at Texas A&M University and the Texas State Climatologist; and John Zhu, a hydrologist at the Texas Water Development Board.
Other speakers included Adrianne Lopez, research and development manager with Texas Pacific Water Resources; Drew Satterwhite, general manager with the Canadian River Municipal Water Authority; and Mason Miller, a source water protection specialist with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
The summit provided a platform for stakeholders across the spectrum to share perspectives and align priorities. In Texas, agriculture consumes more than 60 percent of the state’s annual water supply, a figure that underscores the sector’s impact on both the economy and the environment. That water usage supports the production of $159.3 billion in food and fiber, accounting for more than 8.6 percent of the state’s GDP.
The Texas Section of the AWWA, a nonprofit with more than 4,500 members, has long played a key role in shaping water policy in the state. Founded in 1971, it is the second-largest of AWWA’s 43 sections and contributes to setting water quality standards across North America.
CONTACT: Erica Irlbeck, Associate Dean for Outreach & Engagement, Davis College of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources, Texas Tech University at (806) 742-2809-7953 or erica.irlbeck@ttu.edu
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