East Texas reservoirs threaten environment

DALLAS, May 14 (UPI) -- The Dallas-Fort Worth region wants to build two new reservoirs in East Texas but landowners, environmentalists and timber interests have united in opposition.

The North East Texas planning group is scheduled to appear Tuesday before a state panel to recommend that Marvin Nichols reservoir not be built.

The Dallas plan calls for the 68,000-acre Marvin Nichols reservoir to be built on the Sulphur River and the 24,000-acre Lake Fastrill to be built on the Neches River, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Dallas' proposal makes no mention of the reservoir's impact on the timber industry, even though timber is a major agricultural crop in the area, said Jim Thompson, chairman of North East Texas Water Planning Group and an executive with Ward Timber Ltd.

A study by the Texas Forest Service estimated that Marvin Nichols would lead to the loss of 417 to 1,334 jobs in the area -- mostly in the timber industry.

If approved, the reservoir would ship water 115 miles west to the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which is projected in future years to use more than 200 gallons of water per day per person.