By Jessica Domel
Field Editor

The control of Texas waterways will remain firmly in the hands of state officials following a recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court. The court denied a petition to review a case involving 23 endangered whooping cranes that supposedly disappeared from the Lone Star State between 2008 and 2009.

“It’s a win for everybody affected on the river systems and agriculture,” Regan Beck, director of Government Affairs for Texas Farm Bureau (TFB), said. “It’s a big win for water rights in Texas and a win against overreach of the Endangered Species Act.”

The original case was brought to the federal district court of Judge Janis Graham Jack by The Aransas Project (TAP). TAP alleged that practices by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) led to the deaths of the cranes.

Judge Jack ruled in favor of TAP and put a hold on new water permits for the Guadalupe and San Antonio rivers.

That case was later overturned by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

“The real concern with the whole case was taking water administration away from the state and giving it to the federal government,” Beck said.

It could have also affected how much water irrigators could pump. And potentially could have affected how much water could be used for domestic and livestock use daily, which is currently exempted.

TAP attempted to appeal the overturn of the case, but was denied by the U.S. Supreme Court.

So the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision to overturn will stand, and Texas water stays in the hands of Texans.

TAP flew over the area where cranes traditionally lived, but were unable to find them during the drought.

“They said, ‘Well, they’ve died because they’re territorial,’” Beck said. “That was during the big drought. They migrate thousands of miles, so they could have flown away. It stretched credibility.”

The cranes that were reportedly missing from the census were not found dead. Instead, the next year when TAP later expanded its search methodology, crane numbers were stable.

Judge Jack did not allow Texas Farm Bureau to join the defense in the initial case, but TFB was able to help protect property owners by filing amicus briefs on how it could affect agriculture.

One of those briefs was mentioned by the Fifth Circuit when it overturned Judge Jack’s decision.

“We get involved in cases like this to protect private property rights and to protect the interests of Farm Bureau members,” Beck said. “Our property rights are constantly under assault by different forces, and this is one of the assaults where it was not an actual, credible case. They were trying to use the whooping cranes to take away rights and control property and water use.”

Private property rights are important to TFB and its members. That’s why the non-profit organization continues to be involved in the legislature, the regulatory agencies and in the courtroom.

“If we’re not in all of those places trying to protect those rights, we’re missing out,” Beck said.