Spotlight: LG Water System

At Monday’s meeting, Council heard a report from water and wastewater supervisor Andy Blaha. He said the City’s six water wells are capable of pumping 1.2 million gallons a day. “We average about 550,000 gallons a day, so we’re about halfway to our capacity,” Blaha said. He said about 50 percent of the City’s underground water pipes are made out of cast iron.

“We’re changing to PVC through grants and things like that, but it’s very expensive and a very slow process,” Blaha said. The City’s wastewater treatment plant can flow up to 900,000 gallons a day. The City averages about 400,000 gallons of wastewater flow per day. “We’re about halfway to capacity with that also,” Blaha said.

The City also treats sewer water for the Frisch Auf subdivision. “They pump their sewer to us under the river,” Blaha said. “A lot of people don’t know that.” About 70 percent of the City’s sewer mains are made of old clay tile pipe, he said.

Following Winter Storm Uri in 2021, the State of Texas required all public water supplies to implement an Emergency Preparedness Plan. As part of the plan, water supplies must provide emergency backup power for water pumps. Blaha said he would like the City to purchase four trailer-mounted generators.

“The reason for trailers is so you can move them where you need them,” Blaha said. “We could use them at the wells or we could use them at the lift stations.” Blaha said the City has interconnections with Fayette Water Supply Corporation (FWSC) for use in emergencies only. About a year ago, the City had considered an even closer link with FWSC. That plan would increase La Grange’s long-term water security. The link would also allow FWSC to connect two parts of its system that are currently separated by the Colorado River. Councilwoman Violet Zbranek asked about the status of that plan.

“I hope we don’t, because I hope we can stay independent from them,” Blaha said. “I don’t want to rely on FayetteWater for our water. I would like us to be able to take care of ourselves.”