6 January 16 - 22, 2025 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Also in his corner is a Dallas County as- sistant district attorney, Jessica Trevizo, who is chief of the animal cruelty and com- munity prosecution unit. She’s been work- ing behind the scenes on the bill for the last two years. While Anchía is the self-de- scribed vessel bringing the issue to the Capi- tol, the city he represents is steadfast in its commitment to end cockfighting. “We’re lucky enough in Dallas County to have the Dallas Police Department that has a dedicated unit that actually cares, that does the man work, the legwork,” Trevizo said. The Animal Cruelty Unit is a seven-person team dedicated to animal investigations. For Anchía, the bill saves two birds with no stones — protecting animal welfare while preventing the associated crimes. “It’s the unlawful organized crime activ- ity that we’re really targeting,” he said. Anchía anticipates successful legislative change. Despite the growing chatter in bor- dering states, he believes lawmakers will unite to protect people and animals in Texas. “It’s absolutely not a partisan bill,” he said. “This is about how our state expresses our values with respect to the rule of law and also animal welfare.” As for gamefowl breeders concerned about the future of their farms, Anchía rec- ognizes the importance of the fowl for ethi- cal farmers across the state. “We want to make sure that this bill doesn’t necessarily catch lawful breeders,” he says. “It’s not the goal of this bill. We’ll work with the association to make sure that the activity that they engage in, which is lawful, is not covered.” Battling underground cockfighting and the crimes that accompany it is a team ef- fort. And Dallas has a team made up of poli- ticians, lawyers and animal rights activists who are working to strengthen the laws and increase penalties. “It’s a different animal, but obviously the same blood sport, the same felonies that are happening at these fights,” Bobosky said. The THLN has been instrumental in the drafting and passage of bills similar to the kind Anchía is filing. “We need to bring it up to the stature of the dog-fighting law.” ▼ ENVIRONMENT OL’ BLACK WATER GROUNDWATER CONTAMINATION COULD POSE PROBLEMS FOR FUTURE WATER SUPPLY. BY EMMA RUBY H otter summers and a burgeoning state population have made Texas’ water supply more important than ever, but groundwater contaminants remain a critical issue for state water authorities to address. According to the Texas Groundwater Protection Committee’s latest report on contamination zones across the state, cases of contamination are on a slight downward trend, but 252 new cases were recorded across the state in 2023. In total, 2,870 cases are ongoing. Ten years ago, that number was over 3,400 cases. Gas stations and oil drilling are the lead- ing offenders when it comes to the pollu- tion; subsequently, gasoline, diesel and other petroleum products are the most common contaminants found in Texas’ water. While groundwater reservoirs currently make up just around half of Texas’ water supply, they are expected to play a bigger role in the coming decades. Officials say that because surface water sources such as rivers and lakes are finite, remedying existing con- taminations and managing future ground- water quality are paramount. “As the state continues to grow we’re re- lying more and more on our groundwater resources,” Adam Foster, director of the Texas Alliance of Groundwater Districts, told the Texas Tribune. “Any” amount of contamination in Texas’ groundwater should be “cause for concern,” he said. Dallas obtains water from several area surface reservoirs and does not use any groundwater. As demand for water in Dallas increases, the city plans to tap into Lake Pal- estine. A spokesperson for Dallas Water Utili- ties said the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) — one of the state agencies that documents contamination cases included in the report — has rated Dal- las’ water system as superior. Dozens of ongoing groundwater contam- ination cases have been recorded in Dallas, the report found, although the County did not see any new cases in 2023. While the contaminations do not impact the city’s wa- ter supply, they could pose a problem for the state’s bigger-picture water plan or residents who utilize private wells. Managing Texas’ Water Supply Plan Better When Bo Svensson moved to the northern outskirts of Houston, the fact that his home was on well water was a major selling point. It was only after moving in, Svensson told Houston Public Media, that he found out that years before, a nearby dry cleaner had improperly disposed of chemi- cals that had seeped into the soil. Nearby groundwater wells tested positive for the chemical, tetrachloroethylene (PCE). (The EPA believes that tetrachloroethyl- ene is likely a human carcinogen, capable of causing cancer.) “Apparently, a lot of the other neighbors that have been here a long time had heard about it – it was all news to me,” he said. “I don’t want to get sick.” State policy requires that known ground- water contaminations be remedied and kept “reasonably free of contaminants,” but that can be costly and time-consuming. The con- taminated water near Svensson’s home, for instance, has been a federal remediation site for a decade but still has not achieved satis- factory marks for human use. Because Svensson’s home is outside of the site’s testing radius, he was unable to confirm whether or not the contamination had seeped as far as his home’s water source. It isn’t uncommon for contamination abatement to drag on, but Texas lawmakers could take a swing at better groundwater management in the 89th Legislative Session. The Texas Water Development Board pub- lished a list of legislative priorities last month, signaling that the group will lobby for better groundwater management and long-term funding for water conservation efforts. Last November, State Representative Cody Harris, who represents Corsicana and Palestine, introduced House Bill 1400 to promote groundwater research, science and funding. In an interview with KLTV, Harris said developing desalination technology and building up the required energy supply for the desalination process will be pivotal for metropolitan areas like Dallas-Fort Worth to keep up with water demand. “Water is one of the most important but least talked about issues in the state,” Harris said. “DFW, the entire region, is sitting on a literal ocean of brackish or salty groundwa- ter. Right now, they can’t really utilize it be- cause we don’t have enough electricity and the economics don’t work yet to desalinate the water right below their feet.” Harris also warned that Dallas and other West Texas regions will eventually turn to East Texas cities, like Palestine, to supplement water demand. This is, of course, Dallas’ plan. Harris’ proposed legislation could get a bump from Texas Governor Greg Abbott, albeit for a different reason. In a conversa- tion hosted by the Dallas Citizens Council last month, the Governor emphasized the importance of Texas taking steps to rein- force water supply. His belief in water’s role in an expanding Texas is rooted in the growing number of rapidly developing data centers and semiconductor plants across the state, which require “tremendous amounts of water.” ▼ WEATHER THE BIG CHILL IN BIG D 10 COLDEST DAYS IN DALLAS HISTORY. MINUS 8 DEGREES?! BY ALYSSA FIELDS M any Texans are rightfully traumatized by the Great Texas Freeze of 2021. Winter Storm Uri revealed the lack of preparedness of the state’s power grid, and a source of bragging rights became a pressure point. Texas is the only state in the continental U.S. with its own power grid, and a refusal to interconnect to the energy supply of surround- ing states has been a topic of heavy debate. After the backlash, the Electric Reliabil- ity Council of Texas (ERCOT) now releases monthly prediction reports of conditions similar to the last severe winter storm. With the memory of surviving without power and water for days still fresh, Texans now prepare for the worst possible condi- tions when the forecasted temperature dips. Storm Uri was unprecedented in a num- ber of ways, so it’s hard to imagine the state could get any colder, but alas, winter storms of years past prove it is possible. Compared to the coldest days on record, the below- freezing temperatures expected this week seem warm. Dallas’ 10 Coldest Days 10. Dec. 22, 1989, 3° 9. Jan. 17, 1930, 2° 8. Feb. 8, 1933, 2° 7. Feb. 13, 1905, 1° 6. Jan. 1, 1912, 1° 5. Jan. 18, 1930, –1° Despite being affected by the Dust Bowl in 1930, which caused se- vere droughts, heat spells and dust storms across the Great Plains, the ‘30s also had its fair share of cold moments in Dallas. Three of the coldest days in city history were in the early days of the Great Depression. 4. Dec. 23, 1989, –1° Before 2021, the De- cember 1989 cold wave offered the harshest conditions many Texans could remember. The storm brought 8 inches of snow to North Texas and a handful of tornados to East Texas. Dallas Fort Worth International Airport recorded 295 consecutive hours of freezing temperatures. That’s 12.29 days straight. On the bright side, Dallas experi- enced a rare white Christmas. 3. Jan. 31, 1949, –2° A series of snow- storms ravaged the Great Plains, creating the lowest recorded temperature in Dallas for 70 years. The storm caused several pipes to burst in the city and a minor flood of the Trinity River. Months later, the river would flood again and grow to a 14-block- wide lake, but that’s a different story. 2. Feb. 16, 2021, –2° Four years later and Texans still talk about the record-setting storm that changed the way the state approaches winter weather. Storm Uri was one of the most fatal natural disasters in recent history, as 246 people died and the state moved into survival mode. Gov. Greg Abbott issued a declaration of disaster in every single county in Texas. 1. Feb. 12, 1899, –8° The Great Blizzard of 1899 brought icy temperatures that have stood for more than 120 years. Texas weather sure has a penchant for ruining Val- entine’s Day plans. Creative Commons/DJJudah Dallas’ recent temperatures are nothing compared to the Great Blizzard of 1899. Unfair Park from p4
