Their water is undrinkable. So these West Texas residents have taken matters into their own hands.

Water quality for some residents outside of Lubbock is so bad that residents have taken the extraordinary step of creating their own water utility. They hope to win more than $3 million in state grants to improve their systems. (Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune)

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During a community meeting in July, residents of four unincorporated communities south of the Texas Panhandle held mason jars filled with brown, cloudy water — visual evidence of the water quality issues that have for decades plagued the more than 300 residents of these rural West Texas communities.