Domel v. City of Georgetown

BEA ANN SMITH, Justice.

This case presents the question of whether a governmental entity returning treated wastewater into a watercourse under permit from a state agency needs additional permission from downstream landowners. Ethel and Norman Domel live on a small farm east of Georgetown. An intermittent stream crosses their land. The City of Georgetown operates a waste-water treatment plant upstream from the Doméis’ property. The Doméis sued the City in 1994, alleging that the value of their property was diminished by the City’s discharge of treated wastewater into the stream. The trial court…