Protect Our Water- Protect Our Future is a community awareness program from the Bandera Canyonlands Alliance that encourages local citizens to take action in securing our water supply for generations to come. Water is not just a resource—it is the lifeblood of our homes, farms, ranches, and businesses. We all have a responsibility to protect this shared and invaluable asset that makes our region so unique.

Protect our water

For generations, landowners have been diligent stewards of the land and water, but the landscape is changing. Large commercial enterprises from outside our community are aggressively targeting our water supply. There’s no question our precious water is being targeted by big, out-of-town commercial organizations. Bandera County alone is seeing developers coming in to establish new subdivisions, youth camps wanting to expand big lakes and create water parks, and solar farms that consume monumental amounts of water for commercial purposes. The water parks and recreational lakes have the additional downside of wasting significant amounts of water through evaporation, further straining an already fragile supply.

Water scarcity is no longer a distant concern—it is a present crisis. Sadly, we have a situation developing where there will be winners and losers. Many landowners are already facing dry wells as the water table continues to decline. Springs that once fed our creeks and rivers have slowed to a trickle or stopped flowing altogether creating dry riverbeds. Meanwhile, recreational lakes in some of the most affected areas appear full, masking the growing imbalance in water availability. 

Is This the Future We Want?

Water experts and landowners alike understand the severity of this issue. We are on the cusp of a new ‘drought of record’ surpassing previous historical records. While we all hope for significant rains this year, experts say it’s going to take much more than that to restore our land and water. The combination of prolonged drought, unchecked development, and excessive water waste has put our supply at risk. If we do not act now, we risk irreversible damage to our aquifers, property values, small businesses, and way of life. Protecting our water requires a collective effort, and that’s where the Protect Our Water- Protect Our Future initiative comes in.

If you’ve been involved—thank you!  

If not, this is a call to action. If you’ve been watching from the sidelines, now is the time to get involved and informed. Together, we can make a difference.

How You Can Help:

  • Display a Protect Our Water- Protect Our Future sign on your property or business to raise awareness. If you’d like to order a sign, contact us for more details: info@banderacanyonlandsalliance.org

  • Attend key public meetings to show your concern. The next opportunity to show your support is the Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District Board of Directors Hearing on the Vanderpool Management, LP high-volume pumping permits in the Sabinal Canyon. Join us Thursday, February 27th at 10:00 AM in Bandera.

  • Educate yourself and speak up. Stay informed on water-related issues that impact our community. Our aquifers, springs, creeks, and rivers form a delicate, interconnected system that must be preserved and protected.

  • Support responsible leadership. Advocate for leaders and officials who are committed to making informed, long-term decisions about high-volume water well permits, subdivision regulations, and other critical policies. These choices set lasting precedents for our region and will chart the future.

  • Hold corporations accountable. Demand transparency and integrity from businesses that seek to extract or consume our water. Water-use proposals should be reasonable, responsible and justified. These plans should be truthful and clearly communicated to the public.

  • Help us gather critical data. Partner with us to establish baseline aquifer data that will equip local officials with the facts needed to make informed decisions. Public access to this data will provide transparency and a clearer picture of the health of our water supply.

The Time to Act is Now

Our water is not an unlimited resource—it is a fragile and finite supply that sustains our community.

By uniting as neighbors, we can advocate for responsible actions and policies from our officials that prioritize conservation and sustainable use. Every voice matters, and together, we can ensure that we all have access to water for years to come.

Join us in protecting our water—our future depends on the actions we take today.