Water Supply Dashboard

To better understand and plan for our water future, the City uses advanced modeling similar to how meteorologists track hurricanes. Just as a hurricane forecast includes multiple projected paths based on changing conditions, our water models evaluate a range of scenarios using variables like rainfall, demand, project timelines, and available supply. After careful evaluation, the models have narrowed the projected date to a Level 1 Water Emergency to September 2026. 

• Assuming no inflows from rain events
• 20% curtailment from Lake Texana starting August 2026
• Nueces Groundwater Program production based on limitations of TCEQ Mandated Water Monitoring Plan (Bed and Banks operating protocols)
• Increases to 24 Million Gallons per Day (MGD) in December 2026 with completion of pipeline to O.N. Stevens Water Treatment Plant
• Reuse of reclaimed/effluent water will reduce demand starting December 2026

CCW supplies water for municipal and industrial use in a seven-county service area covering 140 square miles. From the west of Corpus Christi, water is drawn from the Lake Corpus Christi and Choke Canyon Reservoir System, both within the Nueces River Basin, and sent to the O.N. Stevens Water Treatment Plant. To the east of Corpus Christi, water is transferred from the Colorado River via Mary Rhodes Pipeline Phase II and from Lake Texana via the Mary Rhodes Pipeline Phase I and sent to the O.N. Stevens Water Treatment Plant.

Choke Canyon Reservoir and Lake Corpus Christi are the City’s longest-established and largest water supplies. The City controls the water in both reservoirs. Both reservoirs are monitored daily and are operated per the 2001 Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) Agreed Order. The 2001 Agreed Order is an agreement between the State and the City that mandates that the combined reservoir storage level be used to implement drought stages. For these reasons, the City uses the combined capacity of Choke Canyon Reservoir and Lake Corpus Christi as the triggering criteria for the initiation of the drought stages as described in our Drought Contingency Plan, this also ensures the protection of our largest water supplies.

Level 1 Water Emergency*

Pursuant to the 2025 approved Drought Contingency Plan, the City has adopted a new “Level 1 Water Emergency” previously known as “Stage 4”. This Level 1 Emergency is initiated when the City reaches 180-days from when the total water supply is not enough to meet the total water demand. This does not mean the City has run out of water as millions of gallons are still available from the Eastern Supplies (i.e., Lake Texana and the Colorado River).