Environmental Commission Regular Meeting of the Environmental Commission - Permitting And Development Center, Events Center Room 1405, 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Drive
REGULAR MEETING OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION WEDNESDAY, JULY 1, 2026, AT 6:00 P.M. PERMITTING AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER, ROOM 1405 6310 WILHELMINA DELCO DRIVE AUSTIN, TEXAS Some members of the Environmental Commission may be participating by videoconference. The meeting may be viewed online at: http://www.austintexas.gov/page/watch-atxn-live Public comment will be allowed in-person or remotely via telephone. Speakers may only register to speak on an item once either in-person or remotely and will be allowed up to three minutes to provide their comments. Registration no later than noon the day before the meeting is required for remote participation by telephone. To register to speak remotely, contact Nicole Corona, 737-291-3084, Nicole.Corona@austintexas.gov. CURRENT COMMISSIONERS: Mariana Krueger, Chair Jennifer Bristol, Vice Chair Haris Qureshi, Secretary Richard Brimer Isabella Changsut Annie Fierro AGENDA CALL TO ORDER PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL Justin Fleury Martin Luecke Allison Morrison David Sullivan The first ten speakers signed up prior to the meeting being called to order will each be allowed a three-minute allotment to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Environmental Commission Regular Meeting on June 17, 2026. STAFF BRIEFINGS 2. Staff briefing regarding Austin Watershed Protection's Reservoir Update for Fiscal Year 2025- 2026. Presentation by Brent Bellinger, Conservation Program Supervisor, Austin Watershed Protection. 3. Staff briefing regarding Austin Resource Recovery's On-Demand Brush, Bulk, and Household Hazardous Waste Program. Presentation by Ron Romero, Assistant Director, Samuel Gilbert, Litter Abatement Division Manager, and Andy Dawson, Diversion Facilities Assistant Division Manager, Austin Resource Recovery. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 4. 5. Discussion and action to recommend approval of the Austin Water Capital Improvement Projects located in the Drinking Water Protection Zone for inclusion in the five-year Capital spending plan as required by Financial Policy #8. Approve a recommendation to Council from the Dog’s Head Working Group regarding the environmental aspects and future potential City Council action, including a vote on the creation of a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ), for the Dog’s Head area, located between the Colorado River, US Highway 183, and State Highway 130. Sponsored by Chair Krueger and Vice Chair Bristol. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS City Code requires at least two board members sponsor an item to be included on an agenda. This section of the agenda provides members an opportunity to request items for future agendas. Staff should assume that if there is no objection from other members expressed …
ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION MINUTES REGULAR MEETING WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17, 2026 The Environmental Commission convened in a regular meeting on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, at the Permitting and Development Center, Room 1405, located at 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Drive in Austin, Texas. Chair Krueger called the Environmental Commission Meeting to order at 6:01 p.m. Commissioners in Attendance: Mariana Krueger, Chair Jennifer Bristol, Vice Chair Annie Fierro Martin Luecke David Sullivan Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Richard Brimer Isabella Changsut PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL None present. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Environmental Commission Regular Meeting on June 3, 2026. The minutes from the Environmental Commission Regular Meeting on June 3, 2026, were approved on Commissioner Sullivan’s motion, Vice Chair Bristol’s second, on a 7-0 vote. Secretary Qureshi and Commissioners Fleury and Morrison were absent. STAFF BRIEFINGS 2. Staff briefing regarding the Spill Response Program. Presentation by Ana Gonzalez, Environmental Monitoring and Compliance Division Manager, and Biz Yarbrough, Environmental Compliance Specialist Senior, Austin Watershed Protection. The presentation was made by Biz Yarbrough, Environmental Compliance Specialist Senior, Austin Watershed Protection. DISCUSSION ITEMS 1 3. Discussion of the environmental and drainage requirements in the Development Agreement for Dog's Head, located between the Colorado River, US Highway 183, and State Highway 130. Presentation by Andy Pastor, Endeavor Real Estate Group, and Richard Suttle, Armbrust and Brown PLLC. Sponsored by Chair Krueger, Vice Chair Bristol, Secretary Qureshi, and Commissioner Brimer. Discussed. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 4. Approve the creation of a working group to organize and engage community stakeholders; advise the applicant, City of Austin, and City Council on the regulatory plan; and to make recommendations regarding the regulating plan of the Dog's Head development agreement. Sponsored by Vice Chair Bristol and Commissioner Brimer. The motion to approve the formation of the Dog’s Head Working Group to organize and engage community stakeholders; advise the applicant, City of Austin, and City Council on the regulatory plan; and to make recommendations regarding the regulating plan of the Dog's Head development agreement was approved on Vice Chair Bristol’s motion, Commissioner Luecke’s second, on a 7-0 vote. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS None. ADJOURNMENT Chair Krueger adjourned the meeting at 9:59 p.m. without objection. 2
Reservoir Update FY 2026 Reservoir Update FY 2026 Brent Bellinger, Ph.D. Conservation Program Supervisor Austin Watershed Protection July 1, 2026 Overview Austin Lakes Index Aquatic vegetation Harmful algal proliferations Turbid water in Lake Austin this winter 2 Austin Lakes Index • Purpose – understand conditions and drivers impacting Lake Austin, Lady Bird Lake, and Lake Walter E Long • Policy Relation – inform management recommendations to protect and/or improve the health of our lakes • Goal – maintain scores as high as possible reflecting “healthy” ecological integrity 3 Austin Lakes Index – Scores Scores fair-to-good • Water and sediment chemistry, biological communities, habitat • Drivers: land-use, pollutant inputs, climate, flow Good Fair Marginal Abundance of vegetation • Positive for water quality, aquatic invertebrates • Non-native species or excess cover negatively impacts scores 4 Aquatic Vegetation – Lake Austin Hydrilla continued to be abundant through winter Upper reservoir: some die-back Lower reservoir: similar extent TPWD recently completed survey Feb 27, 2026 5 Aquatic Vegetation – History hydrilla total vegetation grass carp population 25 years of data indicate that: • Climate (drought/flood) is a driver of hydrilla growth • Grass carp system-wide control measure ) s e r c a ( n o i t a t e g e V c i t a u q A 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Year 35000 30000 25000 20000 15000 10000 5000 0 G r a s s C a r p ( # ) 6 Aquatic Vegetation – Grass Carp Implementing in a measured way to avoid catastrophic crash in lake ecology FY2026 Grass carp stocking Nov 2025 – added 1,955 May 2026 – added 2,790 May ‘26 Carp Stocking Current population as of July 1 is estimated to be: 4,467 8 fish/acre (based on February 2026 veg survey) 7 Aquatic Vegetation – Lake Austin drawdown Pros Ease of access for shoreline maintenance temporary reduction of exposed Eurasian watermilfoil, hydrilla Cons May increase hydrilla long-term Impacts to water storage & energy Impacts to recreation and businesses Guidance AW, AE, LCRA collaborating on logistics 8 Aquatic Vegetation – Management Developing a long-term guidance document Focus on …
On-Demand Services: Brush, Bulk and Household Hazardous Waste Samuel Gilbert, Division Manager- Litter Abatement Andy Dawson, Assistant Division Manager- HHW-RRDOC Austin Resource Recovery July 1, 2026 Brush, Bulk and HHW then and now: In January 2025 Austin Resource Recovery began city wide collection of Brush, Bulk and Household Hazardous Waste material through an appointment-based service model. This allows for: Three (3) collections per year per service Customers scheduling at their convenience Collections completed off service day to increase the curb access Previous Model Customer notifications sent by mail for upcoming brush and bulk collections Brush and Bulk collection twice annually. Collections generally six months apart Limited diversion of revenue generating bulk recyclables Appointments for HHW drop-off only with no curbside collections. 2 Brush and Bulk On-Demand Appointments CY25 Brush and Bulk On Demand Monthly Appointments • Brush - 14,146 calendar year appointments • Bulk - 52,442 calendar year appointments 3 CY25 Brush and Bulk On-Demand Tonnage Appointment based servicing has caused a decrease in the tonnage collected for both Brush and Bulk landfilled. The tons of recyclables diverted has increased. 4 Operational Costs, Revenue, Diversion, Mileage Category Metric Brush CY25 Operational Costs, Revenue, and Diversion CY24 $121,668 $107,844 $92,671 $134,405 $283,105 $205,656 $152,854 $183,254 $258,199 $172,080 $21,485 334 Overtime Fuel Costs Overtime Fuel Costs Disposal Costs Revenue Tons Diverted $140 198 Difference ($13,824) ($41,734) ($77,449) $30,400 ($86,119) $21,345 136 Bulk Bulk Fuel savings in Brush With on-demand, ARR has experienced changes by program: • Overtime savings in Brush and Bulk • • Reduced landfill cost in Bulk Increased fuel costs in Bulk • Increased revenue from diversion efforts • Brush collection experienced a significant decrease in miles driven, bulk collection showed an increase in total miles. Of the increase in bulk mileage, 22% is related to diversion related materials. Calendar Year Mileage Comparison Category Brush Bulk CY24 CY25 Difference 140,844 160,176 97,110 192,033 (43,734) 31,857 5 HHW On-Demand Program Performance The launch of the On-Demand program has helped to increase participation in HHW disposal services with almost 2,000 more residents requesting service in calendar year 2025 over the previous 12 months. HHW Program Participation CY2024 vs CY2025 40,000 36,000 32,000 28,000 24,000 34,050 35,921 CY 2024 CY 2025 Total Year Participation HHW Calendar Year 2025 Data HHW Drop-off HHW On-Demand Participation Total Disposal Cost Total Collected (lbs) Disposal Cost/lb Personnel Cost Waste/HH (lbs) …
To: From: Date: Subject: MEMORANDUM Environmental Commission, Resource Management Commission, and Water and Wastewater Commission Shay Ralls Roalson, P.E., Austin Water Director May 28, 2026 Board and Commission Review of Capital Improvement Projects in the Drinking Water Protection Zone The purpose of this memorandum is to provide a report of Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) located within the City’s Drinking Water Protection Zone (DWPZ), in accordance with Austin Water’s Financial Policy No. 8. The DWPZ designation and the associated financial policy, adopted by City Council, are included in the Appendix and outline the requirements for identifying, reviewing, and obtaining Board and Commission input on capital projects within western Austin and Travis County. The DWPZ is subject to development regulations to protect water quality and contains critical water resources that support both the environment and the community. Together, these policies establish the process through which capital projects in the DWPZ are submitted as part of the annual budget process as part of Austin Water’s comprehensive five-year capital improvement plan. The Fiscal Year 27–31 CIP includes projects located throughout the Austin metropolitan area, including the DWPZ. These projects are essential improvements to maintain and enhance Austin Water’s services and operational standards. Austin Water has a robust and comprehensive asset management and capital planning program, in which condition, capacity, and level of service are reviewed annually to validate these investments in resiliency, preparedness, and proactive infrastructure management. The CIP projects in the DWPZ are shown in the attached CIP Subproject Supplemental Information Summary and Map. Should you have any questions, please contact Randi Jenkins, Deputy Director of Technical Services of Austin Water at randi.jenkins@austintexas.gov or 512-972-0133. Page 1 of 6 Date: Subject: May 28, 2026 Board and Commission Review of Capital Improvement Projects in the Drinking Water Protection Zone Index of Attachments Attachment 1: Table outlining the CIP subprojects located within the Drinking Water Protection Zone, including their descriptions, current status, and associated five-year and total spending plans. Attachment 2: DWPZ Map displaying the geographic location of all active CIP subprojects within the Drinking Water Protection Zone. Attachment 3: Appendix provides supporting definitions. Page 2 of 6 Date: Subject: May 28, 2026 Board and Commission Review of Capital Improvement Projects in the Drinking Water Protection Zone ATTACHMENT 1: PROJECT SUMMARY Page 3 of 6 Subproject IDSubproject NameSubproject DescriptionProject StatusFY27-31 Spending PlanTotal Spending Plan2015.118Davis WTP Medium Service Pump Station ExpansionThis project is for the expansion …
