Officials' hands tied in fight against sprawl
Barton Springs, East Texas forests, coastal prairies—these treasures are a big part of what makes Texas special. Our natural areas provide us with clean, plentiful water and beautiful places to take our families for a swim or nature hike.
Unfortunately, unmanaged development is threatening these special places. Every hour, 20 acres of our forests, working farms and natural areas are destroyed to make room for new strip malls, subdivisions and other developments.
And, under current law, local officials are often powerless to stop it.
Regulating growth, preserving land
Currently, the law largely prohibits county officials from regulating land use. As a result, developers are able to build new subdivisions over sensitive lands without proper water quality protections. This has been particularly harmful to Barton Springs and the Hill Country, where developers have been able to ignore Austin’s strong Save Our Springs ordinance.
A report released in July by the Travis County Commissioners Court found widespread support in Central Texas for increased land use authority to manage growth and resolve incompatible land uses in the unincorporated areas of the county.
The report stated that “with land use regulations, the county could guide growth to areas in the county best suited to handle new development and away from highly congested or environmentally sensitive areas.”
New standards would allow counties to use impact fees to offset the costs of development (i.e., utility, water and school services) that would otherwise be shouldered by the taxpayers.
Environment Texas is urging the Legislature to give county officials authority to regulate land use. It’s time for our elected officials to stand up to developers and provide the planning and resources we need to preserve Texas for future generations.
