Orange Grove resident raises well contamination concerns amid water dispute

A private well in Orange Grove is now at the center of a water dispute that has spread from one household to the city’s only aquifer. Resident James Byrn says total dissolved solids have built up in the water reaching his home over the last four weeks, and he has been watching the contamination collect in his filtration system.

Byrn said his well draws from about 280 feet underground, far shallower than nearby city wells that reach more than double that depth. For a private-well owner, that puts the burden of testing and treatment squarely on the household, since private wells are not regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act. Officials had not publicly responded to Byrn’s complaint.

The concern comes as Orange Grove officials say the city’s sole water source, the Evangeline/Goliad Sands Aquifer, has taken a hard hit. City leaders say total dissolved solids in the municipal system have climbed from the high 800s and low 900s into the 1,100 range over the last year, while city administrator Todd Wright said the water level dropped from about 152 feet below ground in September to about 165 feet below ground on March 30.

Orange Grove has depended entirely on groundwater for about 90 years and pumps about 300,000 gallons a day. Officials once expected the aquifer to carry the city through 2100, but they now say the rapid changes could make the water unsafe to drink. The city has hired a hydrogeologist and environmental lawyers, met with Corpus Christi officials, and is weighing emergency steps such as reverse osmosis filtration or temporary blending with Alice’s water.

Corpus Christi City Manager Peter Zanoni has disputed the connection between the city’s new groundwater wells in western Nueces County and Orange Grove’s problems. Zanoni said a hydrogeologist he consulted questioned whether wells 10 to 15 miles away could be affecting Orange Grove’s supply.

The dispute has widened beyond Orange Grove city limits. Jim Wells County Commissioners Court adopted a local disaster declaration on April 24 to respond to drought and declining groundwater quality, underscoring how quickly a private-well complaint can become a countywide warning sign. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates about 15% of Americans rely on private wells, and a U.S. Geological Survey study cited by the agency found about one in five tested private wells had at least one contaminant above a human-health benchmark.