The North Harris County Regional Water Authority (“NHCRWA”) is charged with implementing the Harris-Galveston Subsidence District Regulatory Plan. The plan mandates a phased conversion from groundwater to surface water to combat subsidence in the Houston area. HC MUD 69 is a part of the NHCRWA and is subject to NHCRWA fees and policies. The NHCRWA plans to deliver surface water to HC MUD 69 in 2026.

Although your water will remain safe to drink, you may notice certain changes when the NHCRWA delivers water to HC MUD 69.

Disinfection Change: Chlorine to Chloramine

• The ground water in HC MUD 69 has been disinfected using chlorine but with surface water we will switch to using chloramine (monochloramine)
• Chloramine lasts longer in the system and produces fewer regulated disinfection by-products.
• There are special considerations for dialysis machines and fish and aquatic animal tanks. All residents, commercial customers, and healthcare facilities in HC MUD 69 will receive notice of these special considerations prior to converting to surface water. Copies of such notice will be posted below for convenience.

Water Hardness and Color

• The NHCRWA surface water will be “softer” (less hardness) than the current HC MUD 69 well water. Softer water will tend to produce fewer water spots on shower glass and less lime scale in pipes and water heaters.
• The softer water could dissolve some existing lime scale in the water pipes that serve our homes. Since lime scale may include iron, and the iron may initially appear as a slight orange tint. This is expected to go away after a few weeks and is not harmful to humans or animals.
• In the initial transition to surface water, HC MUD 69’s operator will be flushing the HC MUD 69 water mains on a more frequent basis to remove this discoloration. In your own home, you may want to also flush out your pipes by briefly running all the faucets in the house if an orange tint is present, including water lines to your washing machine.

Water Taste

• You may notice a difference in taste from HC MUD 69’s well water. Surface water tastes can vary from location to location just like well water tastes can vary from location to location.
• The water you receive in your home will continue to be safe to drink from the tap. If desired, some residents may want to use an activated carbon filter such as those most refrigerators now have or those installed under sinks or for the whole house which should remove differences in tastes.

Billing

• HC MUD 69 is required to pay the NHCRWA for HC MUD 69’s use of groundwater and for HC MUD 69’s receipt of surface water. The NHCRWA charges separate usage fees for groundwater and surface water. The HC MUD 69 Board has no control over the fees charged by the NHCRWA. The NHCRWA charges the applicable fee to HC MUD 69 based on overall water usage and type of water used (ground water vs. surface water), and the fee is then passed through to customers based on each customer’s individual water usage (i.e. the NHCRWA fee portion of your bill is based on the amount of water that passes through your meter and the dollar amount set by the NHCRWA fee).
• The 2026 surface water fee set by the NHCRWA is $3.05, and the 2026 groundwater fee is $2.60. When surface water is delivered to HC MUD 69, the surface water fee will be charged to HC MUD 69. When groundwater is pumped from the District’s well, the groundwater fee will apply. Surface water, not groundwater, will be the primary source of water upon connection to the NHCRWA. Because the NHCRWA surface water fee is higher than the groundwater fee, there may be an additional cost to customers in the amount of $0.45 per thousand gallons used.
• NHCRWA historical groundwater and surface water fees can be found at the following link – NHCRWA Fee History.

Additional Information

Please refer to the following links for additional information.

• Chlorine and Chloramine Disinfection – CDC Guidance and EPA Information.
• 9/18/25 town hall regarding surface water conversion in and around HC MUD 69 – VIDEO.

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