Post Oak Savannah Groundwater Conservation District (POSGCD) announces more speakers related to legislative water issues at the Milam and Burleson Groundwater Summit held at the Caldwell Civic Center on Aug. 17 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The summit is open to the public and lunch will be provided.
This year they will provide a panel to discuss legislation affecting groundwater districts. These individuals are the most respected at the capital when it comes to groundwater, and they provide valuable insight to the district.
Sarah Kirkle, Robby Cook and Leah Martinsson will bring to your attention the important issues affecting our district and Texas. They will discuss how this session’s water legislation affects Post Oak Savannah Groundwater Conservation District (POSGCD) and management of aquifers, as well as how POSGCD interacts with other entities in the legislative process.
KIRKLE— Sarah Kirkle joined the Texas Water Conservation Association (TWCA) in January 2020 and directs TWCA’s policy and legislative efforts. She works with members to develop policy positions through TWCA’s legislative committees and to subsequently advance those policy initiatives through education and advocacy at the Texas Legislature.
Kirkle was most recently Director of Policy and Planning at Texas 2036, a think tank focusing on longterm policy changes needed to maintain the state’s economic prosperity by our state’s bicentennial in 2036 and beyond. There, Kirkle helped develop the organization’s initial policy approaches across a range of policy areas including education, infrastructure, health, government performance and natural resources.
COOK— Robert L. “Robby” Cook III served on the Texas House of Representatives beginning in 1996, and was subsequently re-elected for five successive terms. Cook served on numerous committees, sub-committees and task forces.
Cook is also a Public Policy Fellow of the 2002 University of Texas Center for Public Policy Dispute Resolution training program.
He was chosen by his peers as the “Freshman Legislator of the Year” for his work during the 75th Legislative Session. He served on the House Natural Resources, Land and Resources Management, and Agriculture and Livestock committees. Cook has been involved in most of the major legislative and policy changes Texas has seen in the areas of water planning and development.
During the 75th legislative session, Senate Bill One was debated and passed which set up the regional and state water planning as we know it today.
During the 79th legislative session Cook authored HB 1763, which altered the process by which groundwater conservation districts manage the aquifers in the state.
He is currently the principal in the government affairs consulting firm Riceland Consulting, LLC.
MARTINSSON— Leah Martinsson joined TAGD as the Executive Director in March 2019. She recently relocated to Texas from Colorado, where she was a practicing water rights attorney for over 15 years.
In her legal practice, she has represented the interests of a wide range of water users from municipal water providers to agricultural well users.
In addition to obtaining new water rights and protecting existing rights for her clients, Martinsson also participated in Colorado’s statewide water planning process and associated water-related legislation. She has been active in Colorado’s efforts to develop alternative methods to permanent transfers of agricultural water to meet growing municipal demands.
Martinsson obtained her undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin and her law degree from the University of Colorado- Boulder.
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