A Texas City Bet Big on Industry. Now It’s Running Out of Water.
May 13, 2026
The mayor of Corpus Christi called an emergency meeting last month to deliver a dire warning: The city, among the largest in Texas, was running out of water. City leaders had to make a plan, and fast.
“Every day of delay increases uncertainty,” the mayor, Paulette Guajardo, told the City Council. Officials had warned that demand for water could outstrip supply within months.
Corpus Christi, a coastal city of more than 300,000 and home to a large industrial port, is not alone in grappling with water shortages. Half the nation is dealing with a persistent drought, according to federal data, at the same time as industrial water demand has risen because of growing needs from power plants and data centers.