2024 Texas Groundwater Summit Wrap-Up

Published September 19, 2024 by Julia Stanford

The 2024 Texas Groundwater Summit was the biggest and best yet. We do say that every year, but read on for the record-breaking statistics, agenda highlights, news coverage and social media mentions, and lots of photos of the people and moments that made this year’s event special.

BY THE NUMBERS

  • 547 attendees – a 20% increase from last year!
  • 47 amazing sponsors, including 6 new supporters!
  • 1,880 miles traveled by out-of-state speakers to participate in the “Water Wisdom From NM, MS, and TN” panel, and thousands more traveled by one attendee from South Africa!
  • A whopping 42 attendees from Texas Water Development Board! Bluebonnet GCD [13] and LRE Water [10] had the next highest representation.
  • 753 drinks and 494 breakfast tacos consumed!

AGENDA HIGHLIGHTS

Click here to view the full Texas Groundwater Summit program. This year’s agenda featured our signature mix of general session presentations of interest to most attendees, discussion panels that explored various perspectives of an important issue in groundwater management, and concurrent breakout sessions that took a deeper dive into various topics.

GENERAL SESSION PRESENTATIONS

Keynote – Kelly Keel, TCEQ Executive Director

Keynote – Dr. “Hurricane Hal” Needham

Groundwater Rights in Texas

Hydrogen Energy Value Chain and Impacts on Water

Legislative Interim Update

The Ripple Effect of Joint Groundwater Planning on Regional Water Planning

Head Above Water: How Professionals Can Avoid Burnout

PANEL DISCUSSIONS

Playing by the Rules: GCD Violations & Enforcement

All the Small Things: Studying & Managing Minor Aquifers

Water Wisdom From NM, MS, and TN

Legislator Perspectives

Emerging Management Issues for Large-Scale Production Permits

Groundwater Crossroads: Perspectives From Agriculture, Ranching, and Wildlife

Current Legal Issues – Litigation and GCD Action Appeals

BREAKOUT TRACKS

Fundamentals of Groundwater Management

Waste Not, Want Not: Advancements in Produced Water Reuse

Navigating the Intersections of Local Regulation

Local Science Developments

Leading Them to Water: Effective Public Outreach

DON’T JUST TAKE IT FROM US – ATTENDEE TESTIMONIALS

Each year, we survey attendees about their Texas Groundwater Summit experience. This honest feedback helps us keep doing the things that people love, and look into switching up things that are not working. It is also where we seek ideas for future Summits, and use this input in the agenda development process with the TAGD Conference Planning Committee. Thanks to the 90 attendees who submitted their survey when we sent it out after the event!

“As always, great and informative breakout sessions and wonderful networking with others in the water world.”

“Making a Splash With Storytelling by Leah Cuddeback was my favorite presentation of the whole conference.”

“I really like the location, particularly that it is not downtown on the Riverwalk. The location is ‘easy in, easy out.'”

“Hurricane Hal was my big surprise positive. I wondered how he was going to tie what he does in with our crowd, but he knocked it out of the park. Fantastic messaging.”

“Very organized and topics were on target for today’s issues with groundwater. This thing is growing!”

“I have attended most every year since I have been a board member and this was by far the best all around.”

MEDIA COVERAGE

As the unparalleled groundwater event in the state, the Texas Groundwater Summit sees growing media coverage each year. Five reporters attended the Summit to deepen their knowledge of groundwater issues, get article ideas, and meet interesting people with perspectives and stories worth sharing. Stories that feature content from the Summit include a 2025 legislative outlook here from MyHighPlains.com/KAMR 4 and an article from Inside Climate News on the Railroad Commission’s proposed waste rules.

Keynote speaker “Hurricane Hal” Needham and his team produced a special Texas Groundwater Summit episode of the award-winning GeoTrek podcast. Click here to listen to the podcast, and click here to watch a brief video summarizing their time at the Summit. Thanks to Jeremiah Long of GeoTrek for capturing that fantastic video footage, as well as some of the photos shared here!

Using the hashtag #txgroundwater2024 helped attendees, speakers, exhibitors, and sponsors spread the word about their Texas Groundwater Summit experience. See below for a few of our favorite mentions!

MAKING MEMORIES

After a day of learning, nothing beats getting together with groundwater friends old and new to discuss the intriguing sessions and start dreaming up solutions to tomorrow’s groundwater challenges. Longtime Texas Groundwater Summit attendees often wonder how many consulting relationships, monitoring programs, policy changes, and job offers have blossomed from conversations at the Summit. Whether over hors d’oeuvres at a happy hour reception in the foyer, or a more intensely informal ping-pong competition fueled by hard seltzer under the moonlight, the Texas Groundwater Summit networking opportunities are certainly one of the highlights of the conference. See a few of our favorite photos below, plus a snazzy video recap of Wednesday’s Desserts & Drinks from Annick P. Maddox (TAGD’s Manager of Administration & Events). You can also click here for a full photo album on Facebook, including some fun photobooth shots!

SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!

Thanks again to all who participated in the Texas Groundwater Summit in any way. YOU make our event the best groundwater event in the state, year after year. We appreciate your support, constructive feedback in the surveys, and ideas offered informally throughout the year. If you would like to be more involved in the Summit, TAGD members can join the Conference Planning Committee during committee signups each October.

Video recordings will be shared to the TAGD YouTube channel in October. In the meantime, you can view the presentation PDFs here and videos from previous years here.

Mark your calendars now for the 2025 Texas Groundwater Summit! We will return to the Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort in San Antonio on August, 19, 20, and 21, 2025. Stay tuned in to our monthly newsletter, The Water Table, and our social media accounts for more updates as they are available. All TAGD members and previous Summit attendees will also receive emails specific to the Texas Groundwater Summit, such as notification of the request for proposals, registration opening, room block updates, and agenda announcements.