Water School

Also called a public water system, a municipal water system is an organization that provides drinking water to at least five service connections or regularly serves 25 individuals for 60 days.

The category of mining water use refers to water used in the process of quarrying rocks and extracting minerals from the land.

Consumptive use is water that has been removed from its immediate environment, including water that has evaporated, has been incorporated into products or crops or consumed by humans or livestock.

Indirect re-use is the use of treated wastewater for beneficial re-use taken after the wastewater has been discharged to a watercourse.

Direct reuse is the use of treated wastewater for beneficial re-use.  Direct re-use is taken directly from a wastewater treatment plant via pipeline and is not discharged to a watercourse.

Emergency use of water is an exemption to the state’s water rights permitting that allows counties and rural fire departments to draw water from surface water sources in the event it is needed for an emergency situation.

Surface water in Texas is owned by the state and held in trust for the citizens of Texas. The state grants the right to use water to public and private interests, industry, businesses, cities and farmers or ranchers.

Beneficial use represents the amount of water necessary when reasonable intelligence and diligence are used for a stated purpose authorized by a water rights permit. Such uses include watering crops, municipal, mining, and industrial use.Beneficial use results in a gain or benefit to the user and society, which is consistent with state law. Most states recognize the following uses as beneficial: domestic and municipal, industrial, irrigation, mining, hydroelectric power, navigation, stock r...