CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The Corpus Christi City Council voted Tuesday to expand its western well field onto land owned by the Ed Rachal Foundation, a move city leaders say is necessary to strengthen the water supply as drought conditions persist.
The project could eventually produce up to 15 million gallons of water per day. The first phase includes six wells at a cost of $28 million, which will be rolled into next year’s capital budget.
District 3 Councilmember Eric Cantu raised concerns about previous assurances to residents.“My only issue is we told residents we wouldn’t be drilling any more wells,” he said.
At-Large Councilperson Carolyn Vaughn agreed and raised concerns about potential impacts on private well owners in the region.“I will always put people before profits, people need to be reminded this is the city’s fault — they had no plan,” Vaughn said.
Concerns about groundwater stretch beyond Corpus Christi. San Patricio County currently has a moratorium on groundwater pumping, reflecting broader regional strain on aquifers.
At the same time, water quality questions have surfaced. Earlier this month, the City of Robstown — which draws from the same groundwater sources as Corpus Christi — was notified of elevated arsenic levels in its system. Texas Commission on Environmental Quality testing over a three-month period showed arsenic levels approximately 30 percent above state standards.
Because of the shared source water, the findings prompted Corpus Christi to test its own wells. According to Corpus Christi Water, only one well tested at the state arsenic limit. “It’s minuscule amounts of arsenic, well below any level to be concerned about,” City Manager Peter Zanoni said of the city’s results. The arsenic findings and pumping moratorium elsewhere in the region underscore the delicate balance facing city leaders: increasing groundwater production while maintaining water quality and protecting surrounding wells.
Mayor Paulette Guajardo said the city has reached a critical point in its water planning. “Today we are at the point where we feared we would be, so we had to say let’s find more water,” Guajardo said.
City leaders say securing additional supply is critical as Corpus Christi approaches November and the possibility of entering a Level One water emergency. Guajardo called Tuesday’s vote a milestone in moving projects forward and pushing that potential deadline further down the line.
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