completed. Currently, several final 

 judgments have been rendered by ap- 

 propriate State district courts and 

 certificates of adjudication have 

 been issued by the Texas Water Com- 

 mission for portions of the Rio 

 Grande, Colorado, and San Antonio 

 river basins. 



In considering each application 

 for a permit for the appropriation of 

 State water, the Texas Water Com- 

 mission is directed to "assess the 

 effects, if any, of the issuance of 

 such permit upon the bays and estu- 

 aries of Texas" (Texas Water Code, 

 Section 11.147, as amended). Thus, a 

 water rights permit may be denied for 

 any valid reason, including detri- 

 mental effects on the bays and 

 estuaries. Similarly, in developing 

 the State water plan, the TDWR is 

 directed to "give consideration in 

 the plan to the effect of upstream 

 development on the bays, estuaries, 

 and arms of the Gulf of Mexico..." 

 (Texas Water Code, Section 16.051, as 

 amended) . The commission must make 

 decisions on each application for a 

 permit, which could have a sig- 

 nificant effect upon an estuarine 

 system, using the best available 

 information on existing unappro- 

 priated water and relying upon 

 recommendations or information pro- 

 vided by the executive director, 

 other State agencies such as the 

 Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, 

 as well as any testimony which may be 

 presented at the public hearing on 

 each such application. 



State law (Section 11.024, Texas 

 Water Code) directs the commission to 

 give preference to applications in 

 the following priority order: (1) 

 domestic and municipal uses, (2) 

 industrial uses (includes commercial 

 fish production or aquaculture) , (3) 

 irrigation of agricultural lands, (4) 

 mining and recovery of minerals, (5) 

 hydroelectric power, (6) navigation, 



(7) recreation and pleasure, and (8) 

 other beneficial uses (includes 

 stockraising, public parks, and game 

 preserves). Further, the commission 

 is to give preference "to appli- 

 cations which will effectuate the 

 maximum utilization of water and are 

 calculated to prevent the escape of 

 water without contribution to a 

 beneficial public service" (Section 

 11.123, Texas Water Code). When there 

 are conflicts between appropriators 

 of State surface water the law 

 directs that "the first in time is 

 the first in right" (Section 11.027, 

 Texas Water Code) , except that "any 

 appropriation made after May 17, 

 1931, for any purpose other than 

 domestic or municipal use is subject 

 to the right of any city or town to 

 make further appropriations of the 

 water for domestic or municipal use 

 without paying for the water" 

 (Section 11.028, Texas Water Code). 



Since all surface waters of 

 Texas are the property of the State, 

 and since the responsibility for 

 allocation of surface waters among 

 appropriators and competing uses in 

 Texas rests with the Texas Water 

 Commission pursuant to State law, it 

 is crucial to understand that the 

 official identification of estuarine 

 freshwater inflow needs, the alloca- 

 tion and possible direct appro- 

 priation of State water to meet these 

 needs, and the equitable adjudication 

 of water rights and claims are deeply 

 intertwined. Further, this fact must 

 be recognized by all involved in the 

 definition and resolution of this 

 coastal issue. 



Finally, a technical problem 

 exists, inasmuch as studies have 

 shown that the freshwater needs of an 

 estuarine ecosystem are not static 

 annual needs. That is to say, that a 

 range of quantities of inflow is 

 apparently both realistic and desir- 

 able for an estuarine environment 



91 



