Meet your Water Committee

Members

Larry Sunderland -Board Member and Committee Chair

Brad Anthenat – President of the Board

Richard Cummins – Board Member

Jerry Schaffer – Maintenance Chief

Hayley DeArmin – Property Owner Services and Communication Committee

Candus Cornett – Property Owner -Media Sub Committee

Trent Edwards – Property Owner – Outreach Sub Committee 

The Water Committee, since its founding, has been focused on building the website to communicate with property owners, updating our historical records, improving our data gathering, and working with TCEQ to bring our system up to current standards. Moving forward, we are now beginning to focus on community conservation measures, outreach, education, and long range conservation planning. 

Strategic Plan

  • Develop preservation and conservation capabilities for our natural resources, and capabilities to accommodate the future growth of the Ranch while managing the use and distribution of these resources. 
  • 3.0 Mission Statement
    It is the mission of POATRI to manage Terlingua Ranch for the common good and benefit of all Owners, to enhance health, wellbeing, and safety within our community, to encourage the protection of our natural resources, to preserve and enhance the natural and aesthetic character of Terlingua Ranch, and to maintain and improve facilities, amenities, communication and infrastructure through responsive services and fiscal responsibility. 
  • Build a stronger and more effective Ranch communication and education community infrastructure. 
  • Develop preservation and conservation capabilities for our natural resources, and capabilities to accommodate the future growth of the Ranch while managing the use and distribution of these resources. 
  • Protect our unique environment, that includes the land, the water, the sky, the plants, the roads, and, the freedom to enjoy our environment along with the responsibility to participate in the community to maintain and sustain our environment. 
  • Develop and implement a plan for utility infrastructure renovation to resolve the current issues and failures of the aging materials and equipment which impact the Lodge operation and all of the POATRI operation. Specific projects are to include: 

o Water Supply System
o Septic Systems
o Electrical Supply System
o Laundry Facilities and Equipment 

  • Create a center and process for education for property owners and other groups on a wide range of topics, discussed in more detail in the section below. 
  • 7.6 POATRI Vision Statement: Develop preservation and conservation capabilities for our natural resources, and capabilities to accommodate the future growth of the Ranch while managing the use and distribution of these resources. 
  • Objectives/Strategies/Activities & Tasks: 

Topics – Water, Dark Sky, Noise, Restoration and the land, business owners, community parks, energy
Water Research and evaluate current Ranch water resources, usage process. Work with agencies about the aquifer 

  • Coordinate efforts with property owners involved in projects. Put out information about wells and 
    new distribution system. 
  • Solicit grants from State and Fed agencies Develop & maintain a web site
    Continuous oversight, annual report 
Water Committee Activity Log 

We, the Water Committee, believe the community should know the goals we set, how they relate to the POATRI Strategic Plan, and what we are doing behind the scenes. To  that end, we are in the process of meeting to set our 2023 goals and make our committee assignments.

February 1, 2023 – Committee members instructed to provide a brief bio for this page and to choose which sub-committee, Technical,Media, or Outreach, they wish to join. 

February 7, 2023-Contacted Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute seeking information on land restoration techniques. 

February 9, 2023 – Conference call with Trent Edwards to discuss scope of duties for Outreach sub committee. Set up Google Drive  for committee and discuss Water Committee quarterly newsletter, to be published midway between POATRI Quarterly Newsletter. 

February 10, 2023– Discuss Water Committtee t shirt design with Candus Cornett.

February 18, 2023- Begin improving the layout of links pages, to facilitate searches.

March 13, 2023 – Meet with Jerry Schaffer, Brad Anthenat, and Arrowhead Well Service to install new well pump at Smith Well and drop camera into Cabin Well to assess well casing. Casing was in good shape. Next step is to do volume testing and send water samples for analysis.

March 20, 2023 – Meet with Jerry Schaffer to inspect new Smith Well pump and electronics.

March 21, 2023 – Phone conference with TCEQ inspector and Jerry Schaffer. We were checking in on what else we needed to do to comply with the results of the October 2022 site inspection.

March 23, 2023 – Conference call with Jacob Martin to discuss billing.

April 6, 2023 – Conference call with Jacob Martin to discuss Smith Well design and specifications.

May 10, 2023 – Arrowhead Well Services installed new pump in “Cabin Well”. Flushing of line and testing begun.

May 13, 2023 – Water sample from Cabin Well sent for testing.

May 16,2023 – Trench dug for required water line looping  between upper rv line and cabin line.

May 20, 2023 – Jim Spofford and Larry Sunderland are learning the daily water system inspection routine from Jerry Schaffer. TCEQ requires weekly, monthly, quarterly reports to insure our water system meet water quality standards.

May 26, 2023 – Cabin Well water sample analysis returned. Well water is free of e. coli.

May 28, 2023 – L. Sunderland and Trent Edwards meeting at ranch headquarters to layout Water Committee newsletter.

May 29,2023 – L.Sunderland picked up parts in Alpine for the line looping.

May 30,2023 – Jerry Schaffer, Jim Spofford, and Larry Sunderland installed new 2′ water line to connect cabin’s water line and upper rv site water line to eliminate dead ends in this part of the water system.

July 12,2023 –  Phone conference with Trent Edwards about layout of Water Committee Newsletter.

August 8, 2023 – Attended TCEQ Public Water Supply Conference and met with TCEQ Plan and Review team. 

August 10-23, 2023 – Design bathhouse and develop material spreadsheet for analysis of costs and actions needed to build new bathhouse.