Article XVI, Section 59 of the Texas Constitution makes the conservation and development of Texas's natural resources—including water, forests, and parks—a public right and duty. It allows the Legislature to create special "conservation and reclamation districts" to manage water, control floods, and build recreational facilities.
Both Subsidence Districts and Groundwater Conservation Districts are locally governed districts that manage, conserve, and protect groundwater resources for long-term water supply and sustainability through well registration and permitting; however, the key difference is their purpose:
- Groundwater Conservation Districts regulate groundwater from a sustainability and availability standpoint.
- Subsidence Districts regulate groundwater to prevent the ground from sinking further and require the conversion to alternative water supplies where available.