WYLIE — The North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD), Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, and Lavon Lake Watershed Partnership have announced the opening of the formal public comment period for the draft Lavon Lake Watershed Protection Plan (Draft Plan). Comments will be accepted July 6- August 4, 2017.
Galen Roberts, watershed manager for the NTMWD, will be available to answer questions and facilitate comments on July 18, 2017, from 9 a.m.to 4 p.m at the NTMWD Environmental Services Building, located at 201 E. Brown Street, Wylie, Texas 75098.
“The public is welcome to view a hard copy of the Draft Plan, ask questions, or provide comments,” Roberts said. “Comments may also be submitted in writing at this location during normal business hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. from July 1, 2017 through July 31, 2017.
In addition, comments on the Draft Plan may also be submitted on the NTMWD website at www.ntmwd.com/watershed-planning/; emailed to Roberts at groberts [at] ntmwd [dot] com; or mailed to Galen Roberts, NTMWD, P.O. Box 2408, Wylie Texas, 75098.
Lavon Lake is a primary water source for the NTMWD, which supplies drinking water to over 1.6 million residents in north Texas. Lavon Lake was identified for the development of a watershed protection plan to address elevated bacteria levels in the East Fork of the Trinity River and the Wilson Creek tributaries, which flow into Lavon Lake, and to protect water quality in the lake itself.
“Thanks to the involvement of local stakeholders in the Lavon Lake Watershed Partnership a Draft Plan has been developed to address these water quality issues and help prevent other issues in the future,” Roberts said. “Lavon Lake meets all state and federal water quality standards, and this Draft Plan will help keep it that way.”
A copy of the Draft Plan is available for download on the NTMWD website at www.ntmwd.com/watershed-planning/.
The implementation measures outlined in the Draft Plan are voluntary, and are aimed at providing increased educational programming and financial and technical resources to local stakeholders.
“We encourage stakeholders to submit comments to ensure the Draft Plan accurately reflects their ideas and vision for protecting water quality in Lavon Lake,” said Roberts. “Once this is accomplished, NTMWD and the Lavon Lake Watershed Partnership will move forward with implementation of the Lavon Lake Watershed Protection Plan.”
A state nonpoint source grant was provided to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension and the NTMWD by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board to facilitate development of the Lavon Lake Watershed Protection Plan.
Other key area partners supporting these efforts include Collin County, the North Central Texas Council of Governments, and the Collin County Soil and Water Conservation District.
For more information on the Lavon Lake project and public comment period, contact Galen Roberts at 469-626-4637 or groberts [at] ntmwd [dot] com.