East Texas representatives push back against Marvin Nichols Reservoir, farmers speak out
By Robert De La Garza
CBS19, January 30, 2025
TYLER, Texas — Two Texas lawmakers are working to stop the Marvin Nichols Reservoir project, which farmers worry will threaten their land and livelihoods.
State Rep. Cole Hefner is co-authoring bills to block the project, advocating for alternative solutions that protect both property rights and East Texas resources.
“The impact of the Marvin Nichols reservoir would erase our ranch. Every acre would go underwater and our beef operation would end,” East Texas farmer James Marshall said.
Marshall is one of the many landowners who have protested the Marvin Nichols Reservoir project, fearing the devastating impact it could have on his 907-acre ranch.
The proposed reservoir aims to provide more water for the Dallas-Fort Worth area, but landowners and lawmakers argue that it would strip them of their property rights and land.
“It just rubs your fur the wrong way for the big cities to be able to come out to Northeast Texas and take this land,” Hefner said.
On Monday, Hefner, R-Mount Pleasant, and state Rep. Gary VanDeaver filed House Bills 2109 and 2114, which they co-authored, as ways of stopping the Marvin Nichols Reservoir.
“We think our citizens have a legitimate complaint, and it’s our job to stand up for what’s right, and that’s to defend their private property rights,” Hefner said.
Marshall’s family has farmed for over a century, but they now live in fear, unable to invest in their land or plan for the future.
“A bill or law, one or more to prevent the construction of Marvin Nichols reservoir would give us hope,” Marshall said. “We’ll be happy to explore the downstream effects on our family of having a ranch operation that continues for generations.”
Although the bill has only been filed and will go through a tough, lengthy process, lawmakers are dedicated to seeing it through and getting it to Gov. Greg Abbott.
“I think it’d be a huge win to get it done,” Hefner said. “It’s going to take some work but l that’s what we ran to do.”
Marshall and Hefner both stressed the need for alternative solutions that benefit both landowners and the state while ensuring that East Texas gets to keep its water and property.
“It’s something that we believe in and we’re just happy to be the ones that get to get to fight the fight for our people,” Hefner said. “We’re happy warriors, and we’re up for it.”