• Originally published April 19, 2010 at 5:12 p.m., updated April 19, 2010 at 5:25 p.m.

In September of 2006, I met Exelon representatives for the first time, and in December of 2007, Exelon announced that Victoria would be the site of their next nuclear electric generation station.

I remember a crowded room of public officials and local business people and the high degree of enthusiasm that filled the air. Exelon was proposing to build a multi-billion dollar facility that would eventually employee at least 700 to 800 people with salaries averaging $70,000 per year. These new jobs would translate into increased business in almost every other sector of the local economy and our unemployment rate at that time was at 3.4 percent.

Fast forward three years and Exelon still has a strong interest in Victoria County being home to a nuclear power station. Exelon's interest is evidenced by their recent filing for an Early Site Permit from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

In spite of Exelon's interest, there have been changes - changes primarily due to the down turn in the national economy in general and the electricity market in Texas.

Our goal as a community is to help facilitate Exelon's high interest level in our location because regardless of the time frame, next year or 10 years, we will benefit from their proposed project in South Victoria County.

One way this project is being facilitated is through Guadalupe Blanco River Authority's willingness to reserve up to 75,000- acre feet of water for this eventual project and for the Region L Planning Group to maintain this project in their long-range plan.

Last week, I attended two public meetings in Victoria, the Region L Water Planning Group and the NRC public information meeting. At each of these meetings, there were a few folks who threw stones at the idea of holding water for this project or even allowing this project access to the water at all.

There were the good folks from Aransas County who expressed concerns for their economy should the river not flow enough and there were people from the big city who suggested that there may not be enough water for other prospective companies should Exelon come to the region.

The fact is that we continue to market this area to prospective industry, and GBRA assures us that their agreement with Exelon gives them flexibility should another suitor company come calling that needed water before Exelon makes a commitment to build.

Local leaders will help drive this decision should it be necessary. However, there are very few projects that will allow us to trade a portion of our water resource for such value.

Additionally, it is important for all to understand that Exelon has gone to great engineering lengths and great expense to design a water cooling system that will minimize their need to withdraw water from the river during times of low flow. The proposed cooling lake of almost 4,900 acres will be 20 feet deep. This lake will allow Exelon to sustain operations while taking little or no water from the river for an extended period time. The normal consumptive water use is estimated to be only 2.6 percent of the daily river flow based on a 60-year average. The engineering studies that have been done so far all indicate adequate water supply for this project and Exelon assures us that they will not build a plant should adequate water not exist.

All of this concern over how we as a community and GBRA use our available water resource assumes that we will always have the ability to make that decision.

As we see the next census unfold, I believe Texas will emerge as one of the fastest growing states in the nation and the metro areas will certainly be where the major growth is and will continue to take place. These major metropolitan areas have the legislative clout to get the water they need, taking water and jobs.

The only way we are assured any long-term value for the water that now flows past our region is to dedicate it for such a project as Exelon would propose.

We do have to decide if the new jobs and increasing pay roll is worth the trade for a resource that big cities can take. Fast forward three years and our unemployment rate is 8.2 percent.

You tell me, do we need the jobs?

 

Dale Fowler is a resident of Victoria and the president of the Victoria Economic Development Corporation.

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