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Author: HCAdmin

This author has written 264 articles
Be A Sponsor, Be A Star At This October’s Hill Country Night Sky Month!

Be a sponsor, be a star at this October’s Hill Country Night Sky Month!

Deep within each of us is a memory of breathtaking awe and wonder. Within each of us is a recollection of that first time we found ourselves speechless, under a canopy of deep night and starlight. It might have been at a star party, under a planetarium dome, or while camping. No matter how you found your way to the night sky, it is an experience that touches our hearts, ignites our curiosity, and connects us all. This October, the…

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Young Life Camp Withdraws Wastewater Permit, Will Employ Zero-discharge Approach

Young Life camp withdraws wastewater permit, will employ zero-discharge approach

LoneHollow Ranch, a camp in the Vanderpool area owned by Young Life, a Colorado-based Christian organization, recently announced they will be withdrawing their wastewater discharge permit from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and moving forward with a zero-discharge water conservation plan. The new zero-discharge plan, developed in a collaboration with the Cibolo Conservatory and also based on discussions with TCEQ, utilizes two complementary permits governing water usage on the property. Read more from the Bandera Bulletin here.

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Sponsor The 2021 Leadership Summit: A Hill Country Conservation Reunion

Sponsor the 2021 Leadership Summit: A Hill Country Conservation Reunion

The Hill Country Alliance and The Hall at Jester King Brewery are proud to present: A Hill Country Conservation Reunion at the 2021 Hill Country Leadership Summit.  The Summit is happening live and in-person on September 30 from 8 AM – 6 PM at The Hall at Jester King Brewery in Dripping Springs. Educational panels and presentations will run from 9 AM - 4 PM and will be followed with a networking happy hour from 4-6 PM. Tickets for the in-person event…

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Big News On Young Life Permit

Big news on Young Life permit

HCA is happy to share some GREAT news from the Bandera Canyonlands Alliance, LoneHollow Ranch, and The Cibolo Conservancy! After months of opposition, including a petition garnering nearly 25,000 signatures and three county resolutions opposing the wastewater permit application, Young Life's LoneHollow Ranch has announced they will be withdrawing their request for a TCEQ discharge permit. Instead, they will be enacting a Zero-Discharge water conservation plan and pursuing a Texas Land Application Permit (TLAP). Read on for an excerpt from BCA's recent press release…

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What Future Do We Desire For The Trinity Aquifers?

What future do we desire for the Trinity Aquifers?

Across the Hill Country, residents and visitors depend on the groundwater stored in the Trinity Aquifers as water supply and to provide baseflow through springs that keep iconic creeks and rivers flowing.  Residents have a voice through the regional planning process to discuss and set goals to guide the future we desire for the Trinity Aquifers. Read more from Robin Gary with Wimberley Valley Watershed Association here.

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Healthy Creeks Initiative Underway

Healthy Creeks Initiative Underway

This month, contractors will begin the annual control efforts to manage Arundo along the Pedernales River and several tributary creeks. Arundo, also referred to as Giant Reed or Carrizo Cane, is a non-native, invasive plant that can take over creeks and rivers. Since 2016, the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD), Hill Country Alliance (HCA), City of Fredericksburg, and other organizations have partnered with volunteering landowners through the Healthy Creeks Initiative to control Arundo and enhance the creek-side (or riparian)…

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Director’s Notes – July 2021: Join As A Sustaining Neighbor And Receive A Special Gift!

Director’s Notes – July 2021: Join as a Sustaining Neighbor and Receive a Special Gift!

Dear Hill Country Neighbors, It finally feels like we’re reaching the light at the end of a long tunnel. Summer in the Hill Country, particularly when fueled by abundant spring rains, is a season for slowing down—appreciating the shade of an ancient oak tree, the cold waters of a spring-fed creek, or the sweet taste of a Hill Country peach. And as we return to a new form of normal, we’re increasingly reconnecting in person with the neighbors, partners, landowners and friends we’ve missed…

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Texas Leaders Made A Big Mistake Ignoring Water This Session. But Not All Hope Is Lost.

Texas leaders made a big mistake ignoring water this session. But not all hope is lost.

Last weekend I paddled on the Blanco River with my family. We swam in spring-fed swimming holes, fly fished and lounged in shallow sections of the river, which was flowing nicely thanks to recent rains that ended drought conditions across Texas. Read more from Vanessa Puig-Williams with Environmental Defense Fund here. 

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Hill Country Alliance Limited Edition Design – Meet The Artist: Olivia Gray

Hill Country Alliance Limited Edition Design – Meet the Artist: Olivia Gray

The Hill Country Alliance is proud to announce the release of a limited edition Hill Country creation, designed by local artist Olivia Gray. Olivia Gray resides in Wimberley and is a junior at Southwestern University in Georgetown. She is working on a double major in Environmental Studies and Visual Arts. The drawing she submitted to the Hill Country Alliance is her pen-and-ink representation of the natural wonders of the Texas Hill Country. “My design for Hill Country Alliance portrays the…

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Study Warns Texas Must Address Future Of Groundwater Policy

Study warns Texas must address future of groundwater policy

Long-term water security is essential for the future of Texas, and the state acutely needs a common law system that can balance world-scale agricultural activity, industrial development and urban growth while also protecting private property rights, according to new research from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and Texas State University’s The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment. The analysis, authored by Gabriel Collins, the Baker Botts Fellow in Energy and Environmental Regulatory Affairs at the Baker Institute, aims to provide…

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