Will Metcalf to SJRA December 8, 2025
December 8, 2025
San Jacinto River Authority
Attn: General Manager Aubrey Spear and Members of the Board of Directors
P.O. Box 329
Conroe, Texas 77305
Dear General Manager Spear and Board Members,
I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and I wish you a blessed Christmas with family and friends. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with General Manager Aubrey Spear and his team thus far, but today I am writing to express serious concern regarding the San Jacinto River Authority’s recently approved application to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) requesting an amendment to Certificate of Adjudication No.10-4963 to dramatically increase the authorized diversion rate from Lake Conroe.
I was made aware of this permit amendment request only after leadership from the Lake Conroe Association (LCA) contacted my office in mid-October. Given the long and highly charged history surrounding Lake Conroe water-level management, it is troubling that neither I-nor my office, which has been deeply engaged on this issue for years-received any notice, explanation, or outreach from SJRA prior to the submission or approval of this request’…
1have attached the letter I submitted to TCEQ on October 14, 2025 prior to the approval of the permit amendment. As my letter to TCEQ makes clear, Lake Conroe residents have endured nearly a decade of uncertainty and frustration due to the continued use of “temporary” seasonal lake≠ lowering under the existing water permit What was once presented as a short-term reassurance has become, as I stated to TCEQ, an “abused and indefinite practice that wastes billions of gallons of valuable water while offering no measurable flood-mitigation benefit.”
In that same correspondence, I raised documented concerns shared by LCA, including the evidence that approximately 2.2 billion gallons of water were released from Lake Conroe in June 2024 under the so-called “Active Storm Management” program-despite the lack of proven effectiveness for flood control and the program’s apparent inconsistency with existing permit conditions set forth by TCEQ.
Against that backdrop, the request to increase diversion capacity from 700 cubic feet per second to 2,000 cubic feet per second only heightens public concern amongst my constituents on Lake Conroe. As I stated to TCEQ, there appears to be “no operational necessity for such a dramatic increase,” and the proposal instead raises significant questions regarding potential water loss, future misuse, and a troubling lack of transparency in the process.
Given these longstanding issues, I want to be very clear: it is unacceptable for actions of this magnitude-actions with direct consequences for the people of Montgomery County, property values, long-term water supply, and public trust-to proceed without at least a conversation or notification and explanation to my office. As the state representative for District 16, I routinely field questions from constituents about Lake Conroe water policy. When significant decisions by SJRA occur without any communication, it erodes confidence and fuels the perception that decisions are being made out of public view.
At the very least, I hope SJRA will send my office a timely notice and an explanation of the need, rationale, and operational justification for any future permit amendments, diversion increases, or policy changes related to Lake Conroe. My goal is not to obstruct SJRA’s work, but to ensure transparency, foster public trust and understanding, and uphold the trust of the residents I am blessed to represent. Situations like this one are how we end up back in the days of strained relations between the SJRA and our community. My hope is that we stay on the path we’ve worked hard to build – one grounded in openness, transparency, and clear communication.
The residents of Montgomery County deserve full transparency when decisions affect their homes, water resources, and economic well-being. I look forward to your prompt response and to improving communication between SJRA and my office going forward.
Sincerely,
Will Metcalfe
State Representative, House District 16