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Our
Past
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The Trinity River was discovered in 1690 by
General Alonzo de Leon while searching for an outpost, St.
Louis. General de Leon discovered a river at a point near
present day Midway, Texas on May 19,1690 and named the river
La Santisima de la Trinidad (which means in Spanish
'The Most Holy Trinity'). It was a custom of the time to
name prominent landmarks for religious feasts or holy days.
The Trinity was discovered two days before the Feast of the
Most Holy Trinity.
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General de Leon would be surprised to know the river and
its basin he discovered in 1690 would, almost 300 years later,
contain more than 20% of the State's population of more than
21,000,000 and contain a river basin area larger than nine of
the states within the United States. The Trinity River is
715 miles long and the Trinity River basin is the largest river
basin in Texas that begins and ends within the state. This
important tributary provides water to over half of the
population of Texas and serves two major population centers:
Dallas/Fort Worth in the north and Houston to the south.
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In addition, it is important to recognize that both major
population centers drain into the Galveston Bay and estuary
system, one of the most productive ecosystems and commercial
fisheries in the United States. It has its beginning in
four forks - the East Fork |
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in Grayson County, the Elm Fork in Montague County, the
West Fork in Archer County and the Clear Fork in Parker County.
The Clear and Elm Forks join the West Fork in Fort Worth and
Dallas respectively. The East Fork joins the Trinity on the
border of Ellis and Kaufman Counties just below Dallas County.
From there, it flows into Trinity Bay - the northernmost part of
Galveston Bay near Anahuac.
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The Authority, a political subdivision of the State, was created
by an Act of the 54th Legislature in 1955. We were charged
with the following functions:
- Maintaining a Master Plan for Basin-wide development;
- Serving as a local sponsor for federal water projects;
- Providing services
authorized by the Texas Legislature within the Authority's
territory.
The organization is governed by a
Board of Directors who are appointed by the Governor with
the advice and consent of the Senate.
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Our
Future
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Economic
regions are often defined in terms of river
basins or river valleys because it is a convenient
and reasonable method of definition.
This is not only
because the river is a basic part of nature’s
drainage system but because of the historic
requirements for rivers to serve as a source
of potable and irrigation water, and as an intregal
part of a defense system. In the past the river was the major
conduit for transportation and communication.
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Rivers are a
renewable
economic resource.
The Trinity
River basin lies in eastern Texas and has a
total length of 360 miles. The total area drained
by the Trinity River and its tributaries is
17,969 square miles, or approximately six percent
of the state’s land area.
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Dallas
and Fort Worth, which were founded on the
banks of the Trinity River in the mid-1800’s,
totally dominate the upper Trinity River basin.
The Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex is the largest
inland population center in the United States
and has always had a profound impact on water
quality. |
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In the
early years of the Dallas/Fort Worth metropolitan
area's development, it was not uncommon for
major tributaries of the Trinity River to
run dry. Today, because of the major
lakes in the upper watershed and wastewater
plant discharges, the Trinity River flows
with more volume every year. In dry weather,
it is not at all uncommon for the base flow
of the Trinity River to be 95 percent treated
wastewater. The Trinity River remains vulnerable
and provides very little dilution. Because
of these considerations, wastewater treatment
plant operators process wastewater to the
most advanced treatment standards in the nation. Approximately
three and one-half million people are served
by eight major regional wastewater treatment
plants operated by the Trinity River Authority,
Dallas, Fort Worth, Garland and the North Texas Municipal Water District. Wastewater facilities
operated by these entities release more than
500 million gallons
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that has 98 percent of all conventional contaminants
removed. As a result of our combined efforts,
the Trinity River is, once again, a river of
which we can be proud.
The
wise use of a river is to make the water available
to meet the needs of growing populations,
use it and then clean the water after it has
been polluted by use so that it can be available
for other purposes, human and environmental.
This is true conservation of resources, and
TRA expects to play an even greater role as
growth continues at an unparalleled pace.
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