Lake Columbia project begins to take shape

As the Lake Columbia Regional Water Supply project begins to take shape in East Texas, its supporters will be considering ways to assure the lake's water quality will be protected.

A proposal will be developed over the next few weeks as the Angelina and Neches River Authority (ANRA), the lake's sponsor, begins seeking input from water supply corporations and municipalities which will purchase the water, and landowners and others who will be involved in the lake while it is being built and when it is operable.

Once the proposal is developed, a public hearing will be held in the lake's watershed basin to solicit input from individuals and groups.

"Because Lake Columbia will be sup- plying drinking water for a large region of East Texas, we want to begin building a partnership among lake water users, landowners, and others with a strong commitment to protecting the lake's water," said Kenneth Reneau of Lufkin, general manager of ANRA.

The Lake Columbia participants include the cities of Alto, Arp, Jacksonville, Nacogdoches, New London, New Summerfield, Alto, Rusk, Troup, and Whitehouse, and community water supply systems serving the areas around Afton Grove, Blackjack, Caro, Jackson, North Cherokee, the Rusk rural area, Stryker Lake and Cherokee County; and Temple-Inland, Inc.

"Many of the practices we will be considering to protect the lake's water quality are those which have been in effect in East Texas and in other parts of the country for years," said Reneau.