Reporting by Kirsten Crow, Corpus Christi Caller Times
A water emergency that at one point threatened to descend on Corpus Christi as early as May 2026 is now projected for more than two years later — a dramatic, lengthy reprieve from a circumstance that would have seen among the harshest of water restrictions.
Projections now show a potential Corpus Christi water emergency called in September 2028, said City Manager Peter Zanoni in a July 27 news conference.
The combined capacity of Lake Corpus Christi and Choke Canyon Reservoir has risen by 10 percentage points since late June — about 25.5% as of July 26, compared to about 15.5% in late June, according to city data.
While Choke Canyon has seen a significant turnaround, Lake Corpus Christi hasn’t yet begun receiving the waters of the Nueces River, still making their way south, according to Zanoni.
That water is expected to make it to Lake Corpus Christi this weekend, he said.
It could mean that the combined capacity of Lake Corpus Christi and Choke Canyon Reservoir may reach 30%. The number would be significant because that’s the number in which the city would transition from Stage 3 drought restrictions to Stage 2 drought restrictions.
That would mean that residents and other customers, banned from watering lawns since December 2024, could begin watering their properties one day every other week.
The change isn’t automatic.
Zanoni would need to declare any change in drought restriction stage.
A declaration is likely to be made next week, he said.
At its lowest, the combined capacity of the two water bodies had been at about 8%, according to Zanoni.
How events unfolded
Choke Canyon has seen pronounced gains, from about 8% full last week to 24% as of July 27, according to state data.
The records currently show Lake Corpus Christi at about 32% full as of July 27, not yet changed by inflows.
In May, a water emergency — a timeline that begins when the city is six months from supply not meeting demand — had been projected for September 2026.
Rain later delayed a water emergency until December 2026 — and by June, to September 2027.
City officials are seeking from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality a pause on environmental water releases, Zanoni said, in the hopes that water levels could be bumped up further than expected at present.
With a combined capacity of 30% or higher, the city is required under an agreed order to release a certain amount of water each month to “benefit downstream water bodies, for aquatic life, primarily,” Zanoni said, describing it as intended to “mimic the natural flows of the rivers prior to the man-made dams that impacted the flow.”
City officials are hoping to temporarily suspend the requirement for four months, possibly with one renewal, to bring the combined capacity to 50%, he said.
Staff is working with the city of Three Rivers and the Nueces River Authority — both of which own some water rights from the Choke Canyon Reservoir — on submitting an application to TCEQ as soon as next week, Zanoni said.
The commission would likely need to take a vote, he added.
What’s next for the Corpus Christi water supply
The beneficial rain doesn’t mean the city will halt moving forward with $1 billion in water supply projects, Zanoni said, but it grants time to put projects online “without the stress of heading into a level 1 water emergency.”
While the rains represent good fortune for the region’s critically low lakes, they represent something entirely different for areas such as the Hill Country, where raging rivers neared historic highs, amounting to destructive and at times deadly forces.
Zanoni, before launching into discussion on the impacts to the regional lake levels, acknowledged the difference in picture.
“We do want to send our thoughts and prayers and heartfelt concern to the areas that were devastated by flooding from these rains that were received about two weeks ago,” he said. “That includes families, livestock and just communities in general upstream.”
Kirsten Crow covers city government and water news. Have a story idea? Contact her at kirsten.crow@caller.com.
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times.
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