The current drought in Texas began in 2010. Though the situation has improved somewhat, the drought is still with us—and so are the conditions that caused it, reports StateImpact, a reporting project of local public media and NPR.
The drought has cost Texas billions of dollars, and now the question becomes, what can the state do to protect itself in the future? Various plans have been proposed, but the most popular and comprehensive is known as the State Water Plan. The Water Plan affirms that Texas will not have enough water to meet the needs of its citizens in the future.
In the case of another widespread drought, Texas could lose billions more dollars, along with millions of jobs—and the state’s population could shrink by over a million. The biggest question is how to pay for it; the plan is estimated to cost $52 billion.