The Corpus Christi City Council voted 5-3 Tuesday night to reject, again, an almost billion-dollar water treatment plant after a decade of effort and its long-term water supply still in question.

The proposed desalination plant was intended to provide a drought-proof source of drinking water, but opponents questioned its high cost and the environmental impact of its salty discharge on Corpus Christi Bay.

The vote was being watched by Gov. Greg Abbott, who criticized the City Council after it rejected the plant one year ago, saying the state might have to "micromanage" the city to protect the region's water supply.