Development Community Continues to Halt Passage of Drainage Design Manual

Last Thursday the City Plan Commission (CPC) once again postponed action on the new Drainage Design Manual. City Planning Engineer Kareem Dallo asked for a two week extension and hinted at delay until January. CPC Chair Larry Nance was hoping for at least the implementation of the DDM on a voluntary basis.

The fact is that the development community of El Paso is in the driver's seat and they do not want the DDM passed. Never mind dealing with water scarcity and conservation. Never mind making sure that there is enough water for their grandchildren's grandchildren or even their grandchildren. What's important are those big profit margins and bank accounts. They have got to afford those mega homes which are more space than anyone will ever need and more space gouged out of the mountainsides and arroyos. Why should El Paso enter the twenty-first century when good old-fashioned Conquistador colonialism is good enough for a few builders. (I always think of the evil villains in J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis novels who are often described by their lust to destroy the environment and reduce the earth to concrete and steel. Both by the way were real Christians who used fiction to talk about Christianity.)

The complaint remains the same: the DDM is unfair because there are no soil tests of El Paso and a comprehensive survey will cost in the excess of $100,000. Try getting their bought and paid for sycophants on City Council to come up with that pittance. 

But the fact is that there already is a comprehensive soil survey of El Paso County. It was done by the USDA in 1971. You can see the report online. The Texas A&M Ag Research Center of El Paso published a guide in September 2000: "Soil Resources of El Paso" which contains a map of the soils of El Paso. You can get a copy of that guide from our County Extension Agent. As I said in an earlier post: the soils in El Paso have not changed in all of this time in spite of the excuses and protests of those in City Planning who are politically motivated to go along with the developers. (Read Carlos Gallinar.) The soil survey exists in spite of the misinformation put out by the voice of development, Richard Williams.

There is no need to spend money on a new survey. The survey has already been done.

There is no need for further delay of the Drainage Design Manual. If some want to make it voluntary - fine. But make those who choose to use water wasting methods pay an impact fee - a huge one.