The 1970s and '80s posed some of the most formidable challenges LCRA had ever encountered.

One challenge was the energy crisis of the 1970s. The cost of natural gas — the fuel source for many of the power plants owned by Texas electric utilities — spiraled upward and would continue to climb throughout the decade, sharply driving up the cost of electricity.

LCRA and its customers were not immune from the price shock, as more than 80 percent of LCRA's generating capacity used natural gas. LCRA also faced the need to add capacity to meet the continually increasing demand for electricity. The solution was to build power plants that used coal, which was more economical and reliable than gas. In 1975 LCRA began construction of the Fayette Power Project in Fayette County. By 1988 it had built three coal-fired units at that site, which generated enough electricity to meet most of LCRA customers' needs. LCRA's other units provided the remaining power.

In the 1970s and early 1980s the national media "discovered" Austin as one of the most desirable places to live. The attention ushered an unprecedented boom for the region and transformed Austin into a major metropolitan center by the mid-1980s.

But the boom had devastating effects for the water quality of the Colorado River, as poor construction practices and runoff washed dirt, debris and chemicals from yards, streets and rural lands, threatening the pristine quality of the Highland Lakes. Downstream, poorly treated sewage from Austin's overwhelmed wastewater treatment plants turned the river into a mass of greenish slime.

Citizens and public officials pressured LCRA to do something. Over the years, LCRA had come to regard itself as primarily an electric utility. Its new challenge was to reclaim its charter responsibilities for taking care of the river.

As the City of Austin upgraded and expanded its treatment system, LCRA worked with the City to set new treatment standards that would remove most of the pollution from the effluent. LCRA also established nonpoint-source pollution ordinances designed to lessen the pollution and erosion that storms were washing into the Highland Lakes. By the late 1980s water quality throughout the river basin had recovered.

Responding to change
In recent years LCRA has responded to the needs of Central Texans by providing energy, water and community services.

Electricity continues to be LCRA's primary revenue source. It serves 43 cities and electric cooperatives that in turn serves more than a million Central Texas residents in 53 counties. LCRA's wholesale electric rates are among the lowest in Texas.

In 1995 LCRA pioneered the commercial development of wind-generated electricity, purchasing power from West Texas plants. The wind power, along with hydroelectric capacity, has made LCRA one of the state's largest providers of renewable energy.

In 1999 the Texas Legislature authorized LCRA to expand its transmission services outside its traditional service area. LCRA has teamed with other utilities to provide much-needed transmission services in South and West Texas to improve the flow of electricity throughout the state.

The 1990s saw LCRA expand into a new area: operating retail water and wastewater utilities. Many communities in the basin have requested this assistance to bring aging and overburdened utilities into compliance with state and federal clean-water standards. LCRA owns or operates more than 30 systems to provide reliable service to residents, while also maintaining high treatment standards that will protect the basin's water quality.

LCRA has responded to growing demand on the basin's limited water supplies. A Water Management Plan, developed by LCRA in consultation with key stakeholders and approved by the state, determines how LCRA operates the Highland Lakes and the lower Colorado River in a manner that best serves all water interests. By the late 1990s, LCRA had purchased additional irrigation operations in Colorado and Wharton counties, acquiring the last large blocks of privately held water rights on the Colorado River to ensure their beneficial use for the basin. LCRA and the San Antonio Water System are studying an interbasin project that would help meet the long-term water needs of both regions.

LCRA's Highland Lakes and dams successfully handled major floods in 1991, 1997 and 2002. The floods highlighted the degree to which people and development have increased in areas along the lakes and river known as floodplains. LCRA is helping local communities work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to review floodplains.

LCRA has increased its services to its service-area communities, including training programs, grants and scholarships. To provide public access to the lakes and river, LCRA greatly expanded its network of parks. LCRA has more than 40 parks, natural science centers and access points throughout the basin. LCRA's commitment to environmental leadership not only includes protecting the river's water quality but also in setting high environmental standards in the way it operates its plants, dams and other facilities.

The people who created LCRA envisioned an organization that would not only provide water supplies, flood management and electricity but would also enrich the river valley through environmental and community services. Each day LCRA works to carry out that vision, with the goal that the lower Colorado River will continue to be an asset to the people of Texas.

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