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At its September 16, 2024, Board Meeting, the Board of Directors of the North Harris County Regional Water Authority (NHCRWA) voted to reduce water rates. The Board reduced surface water rates from $4.05 to $3.05 per 1,000 gallons and groundwater pumpage fees from $3.60 to $2.60 per 1,000 gallons. These rate cuts, complementing the first two cuts of $0.50 each in 2023, will go into effect October 1st.

These fees generally show up on MUD district water bills as simply “NHCRWA”, “NHCRWA fees”, or something similar.

Board President and Director Melissa Rowell said, “We are happy to announce that the Board has voted for a $1.00 reduction in water rates, marking our third rate decrease since the new board members were elected in 2022. This continued effort reflects our commitment to providing value and relief to our rate payers.”

Director Mark Ramsey, an advocate for lower rates added, “I am grateful for the hard work of the board and the staff in identifying ways to reduce water rates. We continue to provide abundant high-quality surface water complementing the even more abundant high-quality groundwater beneath our feet. The board continues to work toward other long-term solutions for North Harris County residents and businesses.”

The motion was made by Director David Barker, a longtime advocate of a $1.00 or more rate reduction.

A printable version of this notice is available here: NHCRWA-9-16-24-Rate-Reduction.pdf.

Dear Customers,

Following this announcement is a Notice of Contaminant Level Violation for Arsenic for Cypresswood Utility District.  The well that received the violation is not owned or operated by Harris County WCID No. 132.  However, a portion of the normal water supply for Harris County WCID No.132 is supplied by the well in violation under an interchange agreement with Cypresswood Utility District.

All wells owned and operated by HCWCID No.132 have been tested and were found to be in compliance with TCEQ standards. If you have any questions, please contact the operating company for Harris County WCID No. 132, Inframark, at 832-467-1599.

_____________________________________________________

Mandatory Language for a Maximum Contaminant Level Violation MCL, AVERAGE / ARSENIC

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has notified the Cypresswood Utility District, TX1010432, public water system that the drinking water being supplied to customers had exceeded the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for arsenic. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) has established the MCL for arsenic to be 0.010 milligrams per liter (mg/L) based on the running annual average (RAA), and has determined that it is a health concern at levels above the MCL. Analysis of drinking water in your community for arsenic indicates a compliance value in Quarter One 2024 of 0.013 mg/L for EP002. This is not an emergency. However, some people who drink water containing arsenic in excess of the MCL over many years could experience skin damage or problems with their circulatory system, and may have an increased risk of getting cancer. You do not need to use an alternative water supply. However, if you have health concerns, you may want to talk to your doctor to get more information about how this may affect you. We are taking the following actions to address this issue: Water production from the well at this facility is being restricted. As a component of the continuous action plan, raw water samples will be taken to monitor arsenic at this facility to ensure the level is reduced to below the MCL. Please share this information with all people who drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (i.e., people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail. If you have questions concerning this matter, you may contact Inframark, the operator for Cypresswood Utility District, at our 24-hour Customer Service Line (281) 398-8211. Posted /Delivered on: 05/06/2024.

Due to the issues at the City of Houston’s Northeast Water Purification Plant, the Authority is experiencing difficulties in meeting the high demand under the extreme weather conditions. The Authority is implementing Stage 1 of our Drought Contingency Plan immediately. The Authority’s Drought Contingency Plan request that customers of Harris County WCID 132 and others receiving water from the Authority permit:

• Check for and repair all leaks, dripping faucets, and running toilets.
• Utilize water conservation measures such as displacement bags, low-flow shower heads and leak detection tablets. Additional water conservation tips can be found at www.irrygator.com;
• Limit irrigation to no more than two days per week, between 7:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. following the schedules below:
  • Sundays and Thursdays for single family residential customers with even-numbered street addresses.
  • Saturdays and Wednesdays for single family residential customers with odd-numbered street addresses.
  • Tuesdays and Fridays for all other customers.
  • No watering on Mondays.

Compliance to the above recommendations is voluntary.

December 19 — The National Weather Service has issued a freeze warning for the Spring area from Thursday night, December 22 through Saturday, December 24.

Temperatures as low as 16 degrees are predicted Thursday night with continuous below freezing temperatures up to 36 hours.

Exterior pipes should be protected from freezing. Interior bathroom and kitchen should be opened where pipes are next to exterior walls. Power outages are not anticipated but possible. Monitor local weather conditions for additional updates.

HCWCID 132 is not affected in the boil water notice issued by the City of Houston. Our water is safe to use.

HCWCID 132 is performing an emergency water line repair on Loring Lane.

Approximately 52 homes between 17602 and 17935 Loring Lane will be without water service for approximately four hours.

Service is anticipated to be restored by 9 PM. We regret the inconvenience.

The City of Houston (COH), the primary source of water for the North Harris County Regional Water Authority (NHCRWA), entered stage one of the COH Drought Contingency Plan on June 21, 2022, due to the observed drop in annual rainfall amounts and higher-than-normal daily temperatures.

The NHCRWA is implementing Stage 1 of our Drought Contingency Plan immediately.

The NHCRWA request that customers of Harris County WCID 132 and all others receiving water from the NHCRWA implement the following voluntary restrictions:

• Limit irrigation to no more than two days per week, between 7:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. following the schedules below:
  • Sundays and Thursdays for single family residential customers with even-numbered street addresses.
  • Saturdays and Wednesdays for single family residential customers with odd-numbered street addresses.
  • Tuesdays and Fridays for all other customers.
  • No watering on Mondays.

Compliance to the above recommendations is voluntary under Stage 1 of the Drought Contingency Plan.

Additional water conservation tips can be found at https://wateru.nhcrwa.com and www.irrygator.com.

If you’d like to sign up to receive important news and updates from the district via text messages, you can send a text message to the number 474747 with the word WCID132 and you’ll be registered.

You can also register to receive this information via email by visiting our Email Alerts Sign Up page.

The Board of Directors of Harris County WCID No. 132 has determined that it is in the best interest of the District to implement water conservation measures. Non-essential watering is prohibited between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. beginning May 1 of each year and continuing through October 31. The following uses of water are non-essential and are prohibited:

1. washing down of sidewalks, walkways, driveways, parking lots, tennis courts, or other hard-surfaced areas;
2. using water to wash down buildings or structures for purposes other than immediate fire protection;
3. using water for dust control; and
4. flushing gutters or permitting water to run or accumulate in any gutter or street.

Watering parks, foliage, grass and shrubbery with a handheld device is permitted during the hours of 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. from May 1 through October 31. No person shall knowingly or intentionally allow the use of non-essential water during the hours of 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. May 1 through October 31 of any given year.

In anticipation of additional water from the Luce Bayou Interbasin Transfer Project, the regional water authorities and the City of Houston, forged a partnership to accomplish an expansion of the Northeast Water Purification Plant (NEWPP), with each paying it’s fair share of the costs. This multi-billion dollar project, to be completed in phases over the next six to nine years, will increase the treatment capacity from the current 80 million gallons a day, to 400 million gallons a day. The expansion project is considered to be the largest design-build project of it’s kind underway in the US today.

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