Online – Water Wonks Lecture 9: Building a Healthy Soil to Reduce Climate Change

Join the Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance for a free webinar as part of their Water Wonks series!

Synopsis: This talk provides insight into how managing soil health can serve as a climate change mitigation tool.

Healthy soils play a vital role in our future when it comes to the health of our local water supply.  The discussion will help attendees understand how healthy soils contribute to the reduction in greenhouse gasses from the atmosphere, the reduction in stormwater runoff, increased groundwater recharge levels, biofiltration of our drinking water and more nutrient-rich plant life and a reduction in irrigation.

Bio: Deborah (Debbie) Reid holds a Bachelor of Science in Soil and Crop Management and a Master of Science in Horticulture from Texas A&M University. She has over 30 years of experience in these areas with an emphasis on natural resource management in the last 15 years.

Debbie worked for the City of San Antonio as the Nature Preserve Coordinator at Friedrich Wilderness Preserve and as the City Arborist implementing the Tree Preservation, Landscape, Streetscape and Irrigation ordinances. During this time, she assisted in developing and implementing new ordinances or guidelines to incentivize the preservation of native trees and their associated native plants and to preserve natural waterways.

She has been a participated in committees to create the Linear Creek Corridors and to implement a variety of codes and ordinances for the City of San Antonio including Smart Growth, Conservation subdivisions and Low Impact Development. During her career in San Antonio, she worked with numerous agencies and nonprofits to promote environmental projects, programs and workshops including the Releaf Our City Parks, VIA Bus Stop Tree Planting, Master Naturalist volunteer program (Co-creator), Native Plant Landscape Certification program (Co-creator), and the EPA’s Managing Stormwater with Green Infrastructure workshop.

Debbie has been a Peace Corps volunteer in Mexico and Guatemala where she shared her knowledge with residents living in rural mountainous areas while promoting best management practices for stormwater management and maintaining habitat for native songbirds, butterflies, hummingbirds and pollinators.