I’m so pleased to hear that the city is “empathetic.” Does feeling empathy excuse one from doing the right thing? I could feel empathetic for a store owner as I shoplifted his goods. I could feel empathetic for my neighbor as I raided his garden. Perhaps I would even feel empathetic for your city as I drive through town throwing trash out the car window and putting wear and tear on your roads, without shopping to provide sales tax income for your coffers.

Your letter noted that “well owners in the area will have the safeguard of evaluations of sub pumping conditions and if related to the EP project, their wells being mitigated to maintain adequate well flows.”

Maybe you have a more trusting nature than I, but that “if related” clause leaves a loophole big enough for a water delivery truck to drive through. How are we supposed to prove relatedness? The company can always claim drought, which has been a problem in our area for years.

And if they do decide that we qualify for mitigation, what exactly does that mean? Will EP pay well owners $10,000 or 20,000 to install rainwater collection systems? Probably not. Perhaps they will dig our wells deeper and deeper, until they just can’t go any further. Then they will pack up their equipment and leave us high and dry.

While I do appreciate that the city of Buda requested the mitigation clause, I fear its real value is more of a public relations move and sop to your conscience than true mitigation for the Wimberley valley.

Please reconsider your dealings with Electro Purification.

Cynthia Pickens

Driftwood