SAN ANTONIO – A new push is underway to try and stop the controversial Guajolote Ranch Development in far Northwest Bexar County.

State Senator Donna Campbell is supporting environmental groups calling for the state to grant a motion for a rehearing. This is the latest step in a fight that has been going on for years. The proposed 2,900-home development is near Grey Forest.

But the big concern is about a proposed wastewater treatment plant that would discharge treated wastewater into Helotes Creek.

A permit for the plant was approved by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) in October.

But now Senator Campbell is joining the list of officials who want the project stopped.

Even before this week’s letter, Campbell and multiple elected officials have already spoken out against the Guajolote Ranch project.

They include members of the state house and senate from both parties.

Former San Antonio mayor Ron Nirenberg and County Judge Peter Sakai.

Environmental groups are also ready to continue the fight.

Annalisa Peace with the Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance is raising concerns about a portion of the Edwards Aquifer, which provides drinking water for 1.7 million people in the San Antonio area.

The wastewater treatment plant, approved by the city in October, would pump a million gallons of treated wastewater into the Helotes Creek watershed every day.

“That’s why we’re asking for a rehearing, because there was so much evidence that they just threw out,” said Peace.

This week, Texas State Senator Donna Campbell also spoke out, sending out a letter saying the record for the approved permit had “substantial and material deficiencies.” She added that the issue is no longer just a local dispute; it has become a matter of statewide public health.

The project still faces other hurdles. It cannot move forward unless the City of San Antonio and Bexar County approve what are called Public Improvement Districts (PIDs) to fund the necessary infrastructure. Groups like the Scenic Loop Helotes Creek Alliance say they are confident those PIDs will be rejected.

“We have been working in concert with the city and the county, and we’re relatively certain those PIDs are dead on arrival,” said Randy Neumann, chair of the steering committee of the Scenic Loop-Helotes Creek Alliance.

A vote by Bexar County Commissioners has not been scheduled. Developers Lennar Homes said they had no additional comment.