Tex. Water Code Section 26.179
Designation of Water Quality Protection Zones in Certain Areas


(a)

In this section, “water quality protection” may be achieved by:

(1)

maintaining background levels of water quality in waterways; or

(2)

capturing and retaining the first 1.5 inches of rainfall from developed areas.

(b)

For the purpose of Subsection (a)(1), “maintaining background levels of water quality in waterways” means maintaining background levels of water quality in waterways comparable to those levels which existed prior to new development as measured by the following constituents: total suspended solids, total phosphorus, total nitrogen, and chemical and biochemical oxygen demand. Background levels shall be established either from sufficient data collected from water quality monitoring at one or more sites located within the area designated as a water quality protection zone or, if such data are unavailable, from calculations performed and certified by a registered professional engineer utilizing the concepts and data from the National Urban Runoff Program (NURP) Study or other studies approved by the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (commission) for the constituents resulting from average annual runoff, until such data collected at the site are available. Background levels for undeveloped sites shall be verified based on monitoring results from other areas of property within the zone prior to its development. The monitoring shall consist of a minimum of one stage (flow) composite sample for at least four storm events of one-half inch or more of rainfall that occur at least one month apart. Monitoring of the four constituents shall be determined by monitoring at four or more locations where runoff occurs. A minimum of four sample events per year for each location for rainfall events greater than one-half inch shall be taken. Monitoring shall occur for three consecutive years after each phase of development occurs within the Water Quality Protection Zone. Each new phase of development, including associated best management practices, will require monitoring for a three-year period. The results of the monitoring and a description of the best management practices being used throughout the zone shall be summarized in a technical report and submitted to the commission no later than April 1 of each calendar year during development of the property, although the commission may determine that monitoring is no longer required. The commission shall review the technical report. If the performance monitoring and best management practices indicate that background levels were not maintained during the previous year, the owner or developer of land within the water quality protection zone shall:

(1)

modify water quality plans developed under this section for future phases of development in the water quality protection zone to the extent reasonably feasible and practical; and

(2)

modify operational and maintenance practices in existing phases of the water quality protection zone to the extent reasonably feasible and practical.
Water quality monitoring shall not be required in areas using the methodology described by Subsection (a)(2).

(c)

This section applies only to those areas within the extraterritorial jurisdiction, outside the full-purpose corporate limits of a municipality with a population greater than 10,000, and in which the municipality either:

(1)

has enacted or attempted to enforce three or more ordinances or amendments thereto attempting to regulate water quality or control or abate water pollution in the area within the five years preceding the effective date of this Act, whether or not such ordinances or amendments were legally effective upon the area; or

(2)

enacts or attempts to enforce three or more ordinances or amendments thereto attempting to regulate water quality or control or abate water pollution in the area in any five-year period, whether or not such ordinances or amendments are legally effective upon the area.

(d)

The owner or owners of a contiguous tract of land in excess of 1,000 acres that is located within an area subject to this section may designate the tract as a “water quality protection zone.” Upon prior approval of the Commission, the owner of a contiguous tract of land containing less than 1,000 acres, but not less than 500 acres, that is located within an area subject to this section may also designate the tract as a “water quality protection zone.” The tract shall be deemed contiguous if all of its parts are physically adjacent, without regard to easements, rights-of-way, roads, streambeds, and public or quasi-public land, or it is part of an integrated development under common ownership or control. The purpose of a water quality protection zone is to provide for the consistent protection of water quality in the zone without imposing undue regulatory uncertainty on owners of land in the zone.

(e)

A water quality protection zone designated under this section shall be described by metes and bounds or other adequate legal description. The designation shall include a general description of the proposed land uses within the zone, a water quality plan for the zone, and a general description of the water quality facilities and infrastructure to be constructed for water quality protection in the zone.

(f)

Creation of a water quality protection zone shall become immediately effective upon recordation of the designation in the deed records of the county in which the land is located. The designation shall be signed by the owner or owners of the land, and notice of such filing shall be given to the city clerk of the municipality within whose extraterritorial jurisdiction the zone is located and the clerk of the county in which the property is located.

(g)

A water quality protection zone designation may be amended and a designation may specify the party or parties authorized to execute amendments to the zone designation and the zone’s water quality plan. Land may be added to or excluded from a zone by amending the zone designation. An amendment to a zone designation adding land to or excluding land from a zone must describe the boundaries of the zone as enlarged or reduced by metes and bounds or other adequate legal description. An amendment to a zone designation is effective on its filing in the deed records of the county in which the land is located. On application by all owners of land in a zone, or by each party authorized by the zone designation or an amendment to the zone designation to amend the zone designation, the commission may terminate a zone on reasonable terms and conditions specified by the commission.

(h)

The water quality plan for a zone, including the determination of background levels of water quality, shall be signed and sealed by a registered professional engineer acknowledging that the plan is designed to achieve the water quality protection standard defined in this section. On recordation in the deed records, the water quality plan shall be submitted to and accepted by the commission for approval, and the commission shall accept and approve the plan unless the commission finds that implementation of the plan will not reasonably attain the water quality protection as defined in this section. A water quality plan may be amended from time to time on filing with the commission, and all such amendments shall be accepted by the commission unless there is a finding that the amendment will impair the attainment of water quality protection as defined in this section. The commission shall adopt and assess reasonable and necessary fees adequate to recover the costs of the commission in administering this section. The commission’s review and approval of a water quality plan shall be performed by the commission staff that is responsible for reviewing pollution abatement plans in the county where the zone is located. The review and approval of the plan or any amendment to the plan shall be completed within 120 days of the date it is filed with the commission. A public hearing on the plan shall not be required, and acceptance, review, and approval of the water quality plan or water quality protection zone shall not be delayed pending the adoption of rules. The commission shall have the burden of proof for the denial of a plan or amendments to a plan, and any such denial shall be appealable to a court of competent jurisdiction. The water quality plan, or any amendment thereto, shall be effective upon recordation of the plan or the amendment in the deed records and shall apply during the period of review and approval by the commission or appeal of the denial of the plan or any amendment. New development under a plan may not proceed until the plan or amendment to the plan, as appropriate, has been approved by the commission.

(i)

The water quality plan for a zone shall be a covenant running with the land.

(j)

A municipality may not enforce in a zone any of its ordinances, land use ordinances, rules, or requirements including, but not limited to, the abatement of nuisances, pollution control and abatement programs or regulations, water quality ordinances, subdivision requirements, other than technical review and inspections for utilities connecting to a municipally owned water or wastewater system, or any environmental regulations which are inconsistent with the land use plan and the water quality plan or which in any way limit, modify, or impair the ability to implement and operate the water quality plan and the land use plan within the zone as filed; nor shall a municipality collect fees or assessments or exercise powers of eminent domain within a zone until the zone has been annexed for the municipality. A water quality protection zone may be annexed by a municipality only after the installation and completion of 90 percent of all facilities and infrastructure described in the water quality plan for the entire zone as being necessary to carry out such plan or the expiration of 20 years from the date of designation of the zone, whichever occurs first.

(k)

Subdivision plats within a water quality protection zone shall be approved by the municipality in whose extraterritorial jurisdiction the zone is located and the commissioners court of the county in which the zone is located if:

(1)

the plat complies with the subdivision design regulations of the county; and

(2)

the plat is acknowledged by a registered professional engineer stating that the plat is in compliance with the water quality plan within the water quality protection zone.

(l)

A water quality protection zone implementing a water quality plan which meets the requirements of this section shall be presumed to satisfy all other state and local requirements for the protection of water quality; provided, however, that:

(1)

development in the zone shall comply with all state laws and commission rules regulating water quality which are in effect on the date the zoning is designated; and

(2)

nothing in this section shall supersede or interfere with the applicability of water quality measures or regulations adopted by a conservation and reclamation district comprising more than two counties and which apply to the watershed area of a surface lake or surface reservoir that impounds at least 4,000 acre-feet of water.

(m)

(1) One or more of the provisions of this section may be waived by the owner or owners of property that is or becomes subject to an agreement entered into after the effective date of this Act between the owner or owners of land within the zone and the municipality. The agreement shall be in writing, and the parties may agree:

(A)

to guarantee continuation of the extraterritorial status of the zone and its immunity from annexation by the municipality for a period not to exceed 15 years after the effective date of the agreement;

(B)

to authorize certain land uses and development within the zone;

(C)

to authorize enforcement by the municipality of certain municipal land use and development regulations within the zone, in the same manner such regulations are enforced within the municipality’s boundaries, as may be agreed by the landowner and the municipality;

(D)

to vary any watershed protection regulations;

(E)

to authorize or restrict the creation of political subdivisions within the zone; and

(F)

to such other terms and considerations the parties consider appropriate, including, but not limited to, the continuation of land uses and zoning after annexation of the zone, the provision of water and wastewater service to the property within the zone, and the waiver or conditional waiver of provisions of this section.

(2)

An agreement under this section shall meet the requirements of and have the same force and effect as an agreement entered into pursuant to Section 42.046 (Designation of a Planned Unit Development District in Extraterritorial Jurisdiction), Local Government Code.

(n)

In addition to the requirements of Subsections (a)(1) and (a)(2), the commission may require and enforce additional water quality protection measures to comply with mandatory federal water quality requirements, standards, permit provisions, or regulations.

(o)

This section does not apply to an area within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of a municipality with a population greater than 1.3 million that has extended to the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the municipality an ordinance whose purpose is to prevent the pollution of an aquifer which is the sole or principal drinking water source for the municipality.

(p)

If a municipality’s action results in part of a zone being located outside the municipality’s extraterritorial jurisdiction, the entire zone is removed from the municipality’s extraterritorial jurisdiction. A zone removed from a municipality’s extraterritorial jurisdiction may not be brought into the municipality’s extraterritorial jurisdiction before the 20th anniversary of the date on which the zone was designated.

(q)

In addition to the fees authorized under Subsection (h), the commission shall adopt and assess reasonable and necessary fees adequate to recover the commission’s costs in monitoring water quality associated with water quality protection zones.
Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 975, Sec. 1, eff. June 16, 1995. Amended by Acts 1997, 74th Leg., ch. 21, Sec. 1, eff. April 25, 1997; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 225, Sec. 1, eff. May 24, 1999; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1543, Sec. 1, eff. June 19, 1999.
Amended by:
Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 644 (H.B. 4559), Sec. 278, eff. September 1, 2023.

Source: Section 26.179 — Designation of Water Quality Protection Zones in Certain Areas, https://statutes.­capitol.­texas.­gov/Docs/WA/htm/WA.­26.­htm#26.­179 (accessed Mar. 23, 2024).

26.001
Definitions
26.002
Ownership of Underground Water
26.003
Policy of This Subchapter
26.011
In General
26.012
State Water Quality Plan
26.013
Research, Investigations
26.014
Power to Enter Property
26.015
Power to Examine Records
26.017
Cooperation
26.018
Contracts, Instruments
26.019
Orders
26.020
Hearing Powers
26.021
Delegation of Hearing Powers
26.022
Notice of Hearings
26.023
Water Quality Standards
26.024
Hearings on Standards
26.025
Hearings on Standards
26.026
Standards to Be Published
26.027
Commission May Issue Permits
26.028
Action on Application
26.029
Conditions of Permit
26.030
Permit
26.033
Rating of Waste Disposal Systems
26.034
Approval of Disposal System Plans
26.035
Federal Grants
26.036
Water Quality Management Plans
26.037
Approval of Plans
26.038
Fiscal Control on Water Quality Management Planning
26.039
Accidental Discharges and Spills
26.040
General Permits
26.041
Health Hazards
26.042
Monitoring and Reporting
26.043
The State of Texas Water Pollution Control Compact
26.044
Disposal of Boat Sewage
26.045
Pump-out Facilities for Boat Sewage
26.046
Hearings on Protection of Edwards Aquifer from Pollution
26.047
Permit Conditions and Pretreatment Standards Concerning Publicly Owned Treatment Works
26.048
Prohibition of Discharge to a Playa from a Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation
26.049
Sanitary Sewer Overflows
26.050
Digital Copies of Boundary Lines
26.052
Limited Liability for Aquatic Herbicide Application
26.053
Don’t Mess with Texas Water Program
26.081
Regional or Area-wide Systems
26.082
Hearing to Define Area of Regional or Area-wide Systems
26.083
Hearing to Designate Systems to Serve the Area Defined
26.084
Actions Available to Commission After Designations of Systems
26.085
Inclusion at a Later Time
26.086
Rates for Services by Designated Systems
26.087
Election for Approval of Regional or Area-wide System or Systems
26.121
Unauthorized Discharges Prohibited
26.127
Commission as Principal Authority
26.128
Groundwater Quality
26.129
Duty of Parks and Wildlife Department
26.130
Duty of Department of Health
26.131
Duties of Railroad Commission
26.132
Evaporation Pits Requirements
26.0135
Watershed Monitoring and Assessment of Water Quality
26.135
Effect on Other Laws
26.0136
Water Quality Management
26.137
Comment Period for Edwards Aquifer Protection Plans
26.0151
Public Information
26.171
Inspection of Public Water
26.172
Recommendations to Commission
26.173
Power to Enter Property
26.175
Cooperative Agreements
26.176
Disposal System Rules
26.177
Water Pollution Control Duties of Cities
26.178
Financial Assistance Dependent on Water Quality Programs
26.179
Designation of Water Quality Protection Zones in Certain Areas
26.180
Nonpoint Source Water Pollution Control Programs of Certain Municipalities
26.0191
Temporary or Emergency Order Relating to Discharge of Waste or Pollutants
26.215
Peace Officers
26.261
Short Title
26.262
Policy and Construction
26.263
Definitions
26.264
Administrative Provisions
26.265
Texas Spill Response Account
26.266
Removal of Spill or Discharge
26.267
Exemptions
26.0271
Permits Authorizing Reuse Water System Contributions and Discharges
26.0272
Permits Authorizing Discharges from Certain Seawater Desalination Facilities
26.0281
Consideration of Compliance History
26.0282
Consideration of Need and Regional Treatment Options
26.0283
Denial of Application for Permit
26.0286
Procedures Applicable to Permits for Certain Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations
26.0291
Water Quality Fee
26.0292
Fees Charged to Aquaculture Facilities
26.0301
Wastewater Operations Company Registration and Operator Licensing
26.301
Definitions
26.302
Regulation of Poultry Facilities
26.303
Handling and Disposal of Poultry Carcasses
26.304
Records of Sale, Purchase, Transfer, or Application of Poultry Litter
26.305
Inspection of Records
26.0311
Standards for Control of Graywater
26.341
Purpose
26.342
Definitions
26.343
Regulated Substances
26.344
Exemptions
26.0345
Discharge from Aquaculture Facilities
26.345
Administrative Provisions
26.346
Registration Requirements
26.347
Tank Standards
26.348
Leak Detection and Record Maintenance
26.349
Reporting of Releases and Corrective Action
26.350
Tank Closure Requirements
26.351
Corrective Action
26.352
Financial Responsibility
26.354
Emergency Orders
26.355
Recovery of Costs
26.356
Inspections, Monitoring, and Testing
26.357
Standards and Rules
26.358
Collection, Use, and Disposition of Storage Tank Fees and Other Revenues
26.359
Local Regulation or Ordinance
26.360
Privatization of Program
26.361
Expiration of Reimbursement Program
26.362
Suit to Test Validity of Closure Letter
26.363
Reliance on Closure Letter
26.364
Registration of Persons Who Contract to Perform Corrective Action
26.365
Registration of Geoscientists Who Contract to Perform Corrective Action
26.366
Licensure of Persons Who Supervise Corrective Actions
26.367
Licensure of Geoscientists Who Supervise Corrective Actions
26.401
Legislative Findings
26.402
Definition
26.403
Creation and Membership of Texas Groundwater Protection Committee
26.404
Administration
26.405
Powers and Duties of Committee
26.0405
General Permits for Certain Sewage Treatment and Disposal Systems
26.406
Groundwater Contamination Information and Reports
26.407
Protection and Enhancement Plans
26.408
Notice of Groundwater Contamination
26.451
Definitions
26.452
Underground Storage Tank Contractor
26.456
Underground Storage Tank On-site Supervisor Licensing
26.0461
Fees for Edwards Aquifer Plans
26.0481
Disposal of Dairy Waste in Retention Facility
26.0491
Model Standards to Prevent Discharge of Untreated Wastewater from Sanitary Sewers
26.501
Definitions
26.502
Applicability
26.503
Regulation of Certain Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation Wastes
26.504
Waste Application Field Soil Sampling and Testing
26.551
Definitions
26.552
Applicability
26.553
Regulation of Quarries Within Water Quality Protection Area
26.554
Financial Responsibility for Discharges of Certain Wastes Within Water Quality Protection Area
26.555
Inspections of and Sampling of Water in Pilot Program Areas
26.556
Unauthorized Discharges of Certain Wastes Within Water Quality Protection Area
26.557
Emergency Orders
26.558
Recovery of Costs for Unauthorized Discharges Within Water Quality Protection Area
26.559
Reclamation and Restoration Fund Account
26.560
Cooperation with Other State Agencies
26.562
Expiration
26.1211
Pretreatment Effluent Standards
26.1311
Duty of State Soil and Water Conservation Board
26.2171
Venue
26.02715
Disposal of Reclaimed Wastewater to Wastewater Collection System
26.3441
Aboveground Storage Tanks
26.3442
Performance Standards for Safety at Storage Vessels
26.3443
Certain Commission Exemptions and Rules
26.3444
Certification Fee
26.3465
Failure or Refusal to Provide Proof of Registration or Certification of Compliance
26.3467
Duty to Ensure Certification of Tank Before Delivery
26.3475
Release Detection Requirements
26.3476
Secondary Containment Required for Tanks Located over Certain Aquifers
26.3511
Corrective Action by the Commission
26.3512
Owner or Operator Responsibility
26.3513
Liability and Costs: Multiple Owners and Operators
26.3514
Limits on Liability of Lender
26.3515
Limits on Liability of Corporate Fiduciary
26.3516
Limits on Liability of Taxing Unit
26.3571
Eligible Owner or Operator
26.3572
Groundwater Protection Cleanup Program
26.3573
Petroleum Storage Tank Remediation Account
26.3574
Fee on Delivery of Certain Petroleum Products
26.35731
Consideration and Processing of Applications for Reimbursement
26.35735
Claims Audit

Accessed:
Mar. 23, 2024

§ 26.179’s source at texas​.gov