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� Richard Holzaepfel� Susan Evans

FFaarrmmeerrss llooookk aatt aalltteerrnnaatteess�WATER

TCEQto meetagain onFeb. 26Decision expected on

LCRA request

With the likelihood of no water forirrigation again in 2014, MatagordaCounty Texas AgriLife Extensionagent Brent Batchelor said local agri-culture producers are looking at alter-native crops this year.“The reality check is that even if the

TCEQ (Texas Commission on

Environmental Quality) denies theLCRA request and drops the HighlandLake release level back to 850,000acre-feet (of stored water) the odds arestill pretty astronomical that the lakesare going to reach that level by March1,” said Batchelor. “But those levels would still be bet-

ter than the 1.1 million acre-feet theLCRA is requesting. And I doubt theyare going to set aside the entire emer-gency order request.”As a result, the acreage planted with

rice is once again going to be downsignificantly.“We do have a few (rice farms) that

do have water wells and there are afew new wells coming on line,”Batchelor said. “But the stark reality isrice production is going to be down.We’re looking at around 1,500 acresthis year as opposed to the 20,000acres of rice that would normally beplanted if we could irrigate.”With between 100,000 and 130,000

No water means no rice

While it seems unlikelythere will be any releases ofstored water for irrigation pur-poses thisyear, BayC i t yChamber ofCommercea n dAgricultureP r e s i d e n tM i t c hT h a m e ssaid local and regional offi-cials are continuing to battlefor the future.On Friday, the State Office

of Administrative Hearingswas scheduled to make a rul-ing on an expedited hearingconcerning the emergencyrequest from the LowerColorado River Authority tothe Texas Commission onEnvironmental Quality towithhold the release of inter-ruptible water supplies forirrigation purposes in 2014.According to the office’s web-site, “The mission of the StateOffice of AdministrativeHearings is to conduct fair,prompt and efficient hearingsand alternative dispute resolu-tion (ADR) proceedings andto provide fair, logical andtimely decisions.”Following the SOAH rec-

ommendation, the TCEQcommissioners are scheduledto meet on Wednesday, Feb.26 to take action on the LCRArequest. In addition to with-holding the releases of inter-ruptible water supplies, theLCRA is also requesting thetrigger point for such releasesto be increased from the cur-rent 850,000 acre-feet ofstored water to 1.1 millionacre-feet.The original TCEQ hearing

on the LCRA emergencyrequest was held Wednesday,Feb. 12. The SOAH sessionwas held Monday, Feb. 17.Thames was among thoseattending that hearing, which

� EDUCATION

BCHSnamesinterimprincipalKoenig resigns;

Townsend steps in

Bay City IndependentSchool District SuperintendentKeith Brown announcedThursday that Chris Townsendhas been named the interim

principal atBay CityH i g hSchool. Townsend

was namedto the posi-tion follow-ing the resig-nation of

former principal Heath Koenigwho resigned for personal rea-sons after serving Bay CityISD in various capacities for14 years including SpecialEducation Teacher, AssistantMiddle School Principal,Middle School Principal, andAssociate High SchoolPrincipal before serving as theBCHS Principal since April16, 2012.Townsend is a 1991 Bay

City High School graduate. Hereceived his bachelors ofmusic education degree in1998 from the University ofHouston and his masters ofeducation degree in 2009 fromLamar University.He has served as the

Associate Principal of BayCity High School from April2012 to the present and wasAssistant Principal of Bay CityHigh School August 2010 toMarch 2012.Townsend also has served as

assistant Junior High BandDirector from 2008 to 2010 atBay City Junior High, Directorof Music at Van VleckIndependent School Districtfrom 2006 to 2008, Director ofMusic at TidehavenIndependent School Districtfrom 2000 to 2006 andAssistant High School BandDirector at Bay City HighSchool 1998 to 2000.According to the news

release from Brown, Bay CityISD is currently advertisingthe employment position ofHigh School Principal for the2014-2015 school year.

Thames

Photos by Barry Halvorson/ Bay City Tribune

Members of the Bay City Volunteer Fire Department use the“jaws of life” to free the driver of a truck-tractor that ran off theroad and rolled over following a collision Wednesday afternoon

on Highway 60 about a mile north of the Bay City city limits.Despite needing to be freed, the driver of the truck was treatedat the scene but did not need to be transported to a hospital.

Matagorda Beach is a popular place for finding and collectingshells throughout the year.

Shelly Story / Bay City Tribune

Matagorda Beach on list of topsecret beaches in the world

Already well known to local resi-dents, Matagorda Beach is now less ofa secret after being included on a list ofthe “Best Secret Beaches on Earth”published by Travel and LeisureMagazine. “And that’s pretty darn neat,”

Matagorda County Judge Nate

McDonald said. “And with the public-ity, I think we’re going to see morefriends and neighbors coming to thebeach, and they are going to be newfriends and neighbors who will be vis-iting.” And while the list includes beaches

from such exotic locations as Thailand,Costa Rico and Seychelles, it was the

Where tofind it� visit theTravel andLeisureMagazine web-site athttp://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/best-secret-beach-es-on-earth/22

Townsend

See CROPS, Page 8A

See WATER, Page 8A

See BEACH, Page 8A

The front end of this Ford Expedition was smashedwhen it collided with a Peterbilt 18-wheeler haul-ing a flat bed trailer of turf Wednesday afternoonon Highway 60. The driver of the Ford was trans-ported by ambulance to the Matagorda RegionalMedical Center.

11 iinnjjuurreedd iinnccoolllliissiioonn

A two-vehicle collision onHighway 60 north of Bay Cityresulted in one driver beingtransported for medical atten-tion while the other declinedtransport despite having to bepried out of the cab of his 18-

wheeler with the “jaws of life”by the Bay City Volunteer FireDepartment.Department of Public Safety

Trooper I Kendall Kersh of theBay City office conducted theinvestigation into the wreck.He said it occurred at approxi-mately 2:15 p.m. onWednesday, Feb. 19 aboutone-mile north of the Bay Citycity limits on Highway 60. “There was a white Ford

18-wheeler, SUVwreck stops traffic

Vol. 169 No. 16Vol. 169 No. 16 Serving Matagorda County since 1845Serving Matagorda County since 1845 $1.00$1.00

The TribuneB AY

C I T Y

SundayFebruary 23, 2014

baycitytribune.com

All-StateTwo Tigers named toTSWA All-State team

SPORTS, 4B

HealthLook inside for the newmonthly health maga-zine, Inspire Health

HonoredPalacios Chamber awardscitizens, business atannual banquet

LIVING, 2B

BY BARRY [email protected]





See WRECK, Page 5A