Houston and state officials are working to invest about $4.93 billion in water improvements to prevent widespread boil-water notices and massive water losses if aging infrastructure causes catastrophic failures in the future.

Josh Sanders, Mayor John Whitmire’s director of intergovernmental relations, said city officials would not request the money from the state all at once, but rather seek funds to support individual projects., such as replacing the line that carries untreated water to the city’s East Water Purification Plant as part of that overall cost. Houston Public Works spokeswoman Erin Jones said there are no plans to charge Houston residents more for their water usage to offset the cost of utility improvements, nor is there a study that determines the need to increase water rates.

Sanders and other city officials plan to attend committee hearings in Austin on Sept. 3 to present Houston’s needs.

Houston Water Utility consists of a labyrinth of water and wastewater treatment plants and sewage lift stations, as well as underground pipelines that deliver water to more than 5 million residents in the Houston region. Major users include the Texas Medical Center – the largest in the country – and the region’s 622 petrochemical plants, which account for 44% of all plants in the country.

A failure of the supply line could mean problems for millions of people. The plant in the east supplies water to 65 to 70 percent of the city’s residents. If the line that brings raw water to the plant for treatment fails, it could mean many residents are left without water.

“Not to mention the Astros can’t play,” said Greg Eyerly, director of Houston Water.

Eyerly said the $4.93 billion cost to repair the deterioration does not include the city’s settlement agreement, which requires the city to spend $2 billion over the next 15 years to improve its water system.

Other requirements include the repair or replacement of 2.5% of sewer pipes per year and 5% of pumping stations. The decree only applies to the sewer system, but both the water and sewer systems are financed by the municipal utility system.

The city’s water infrastructure has been a topic of contention among city leaders and residents in recent months. Houstonians have recently struggled with high water bills caused by outdated water meters and faulty reading devices, patched with a manual reading process that isn’t always accurate.

Houston Water has three main issues when it comes to repairs to its water utility. Two of the most critical involve the East Water Purification Plant, which treats between 300 and 310 million gallons of water daily.

A new raw water pipeline is needed at the East Plant to replace the 70-year-old one. In addition, the plant must be completely rebuilt.

Then there’s the need to fix Houston’s leaky pipes, which are at the heart of the city’s water bill problems. Houston’s water loss alone could supply water to a city of 900,000 people — like Fort Worth or San Jose, Eyerly said.

One of the politicians Houston is working with is Senator Charles Perry, a Republican from Lubbock who has pushed water initiatives at the state level.

Perry chairs the Water, Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee and the State Water Implementation Fund Committee, both of which could prove useful in mobilizing state funds.

Officials warn that the necessary corrections in Houston need to be made sooner rather than later.

“The longer we wait to make these changes, the more we put our system at risk,” Eyerly said.