Heavy Texas Rain Pushes Corpus Christi Water Emergency Into 2027

Corpus Christi, the leading crude-export hub in the US, is no longer facing an imminent emergency after heavy rain and tropical storms replenished reservoirs that had been depleted by years of drought.

The South Texas coastal city had projected it could be forced to implement emergency water-saving measures by December as water supplies dwindled. But recent rainfall has helped delay the emergency date into the latter half of 2027, according to City Manager Peter Zanoni.

“The rains have been extremely beneficial,” said Zanoni, who will present the new data to the City Council on Tuesday. “A Level One water emergency is no longer imminent.”

The wet weather eases pressure on a fast-growing industrial hub where Exxon Mobil Corp., Koch Industries LLC and Celanese Corp. operate. Residents have long clashed with corporate users over water consumption as drought conditions prompted lawn-watering restrictions and higher utility bills.

There are signs these shortages are easing. Lake Corpus Christi is 31% full, compared with 9.1% in March, while nearby Lake Texana has completely filled.

If the city reaches a Level 1 Water Emergency, defined as being within 180 days of projected supply failing to meet demand, residents and businesses would have to reduce water consumption by 25%. About 20 large industrial customers, including Exxon and Koch, account for about 60% of the city’s water use. Residential water use has already been restricted for the past two years under a Stage 3 drought plan.

The city cannot depend on solely on rain, however. The City Council has approved $1 billion of new infrastructure projects over the past year including drilling new water wells, Zanoni said. The most contentious proposal still in question is the Inner Harbor Seawater Desalination Project.

Years of debate over the plant’s cost, location and environmental impact have delayed the project, and the City Council voted to delay a decision on the plant until September. Some council members have questioned whether residents would bear much of the cost even though industry consumes most of the region’s water.

“We’ve tapped every water source we can,” Zanoni said. “The next one that’s been contemplated for over a decade is seawater desalination, that’s what’s going to help this region.”