The Lower Colorado River Authority may soon impose a temporary moratorium on new water sales until drought conditions ease.

The goal is to protect water supplies already promised to cities and industrial users along the Colorado River, said General Manager Tom Mason today.


“We’re trying to not increase demand on the river and lakes,” LCRA spokesman Robert Cullick said.

The proposal would not affect cities or industrial users with existing water contracts, including Austin.

“If you have purchased water, that’s fine. If you want new water contracts, we will recommend to the board of directors that we temporarily put those on hold until the lakes significantly refill, ending the drought,” Cullick said.

Shoreline residents along the Highland Lakes who are seeking permits for existing water use — those with pipes already pulling out water — would not be affected by the proposal.

Despite recent rains, Central Texas remains in the third year of an intense drought that last summer dropped Lake Travis and Lake Buchanan — the region’s water-supply reservoirs — to less than 40 percent of capacity.

“Those lakes are still less than half full at the end of October — traditionally a rainy month,” Mason said. “We’re in a real hole.”