lege+water: April 2021 Update

lege+water: April 2021 Update

Every month during the 87th Regular Session of the Texas Legislature, Dr. Todd Votteler and Dr. Robert Mace provide an update on water-related legislation. The key water committees are Water, Agriculture, and Rural Affairs in the Senate, chaired by Senator Charles...
Rebecca Springs, salamander surveys, and WHY they matter

Rebecca Springs, salamander surveys, and WHY they matter

Salamanders are sensitive critters. With external gills and limited habitats, they are good indicators of groundwater health. They rely on clean, clear, flowing springs to maintain healthy populations. Low water levels in aquifers lead to less spring flow and less...
Easing into watershed protection with taxes and bonds featuring Lon Shell, Frank Davis, and Phillip Covington

Easing into watershed protection with taxes and bonds featuring Lon Shell, Frank Davis, and Phillip Covington

Episode Notes  In this episode, Leslie Bobby of Southern Regional Extension Forestry talks to Frank Davis and Commissioner Lon Shell, important water management players in Texas’s Hill Country region, an area marked by considerable growth and development in...
Texas House backs green solutions to water problems

Texas House backs green solutions to water problems

Water Board will invest $4.5 million a year for nature-based infrastructure The Texas House gave final approval today to legislation to fund rain gardens, green roofs, constructed wetlands and other “nature-based” strategies for reducing water pollution, flooding and...
10 Texas climate bills to watch on Earth Day

10 Texas climate bills to watch on Earth Day

Texas, as the saying goes, has four seasons: drought, flood, blizzard, and twister. This old quip has hit a bit too close to home for Texans this year. We are less than two months removed from a devastating polar vortex that could yet prove to be the costliest...
With Texas back in drought, watering cutbacks resume in San Antonio

With Texas back in drought, watering cutbacks resume in San Antonio

Only two months ago, Texas residents were still watching snow melt from a historic winter freeze. But with little moisture over the past several weeks, drought conditions are now spreading across the state. For the first time since 2018, San Antonio officials on...