News & Updates
Wren: Dark skies vital to gaining perspective
Friday evening’s Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math Expo keynote speaker was William Wren, a distinguished and award-winning advocate for dark sky preservation. Wren has worked at the McDonald Observatory for 29 years and currently is the special...
Texas Senate approves using herbicides to fight illegal border crossings
It’s not a wall and it isn’t more boots on the ground, but the Texas Senate has approved a bill that would send millions of dollars of herbicides to the front lines to battle illegal immigration. The Texas Senate passed legislation to send up to $10 million in...
Bulverde developments threaten local water supply by discharging treated sewage into the Edwards Aquifer
The past decade has seen numerous developments sprouting up in the area around Bulverde, Texas. Driven by close proximity to the one of the fastest-growing cities in the U.S., the sprawling development in the Bulverde area is going largely unchecked, causing all sorts...
How San Antonio uses its water to influence Kendall County development
Two years have passed since Kendall County Water Control and Improvement District (WCID) No. 3 was introduced in Senate Bill (SB) 914, by Sen. Donna Campbell. As written, 1,055 acres were to be developed and more than 2,000 homes built, but it had no source for a...
Dark skies bill moves forward in legislature
International Dark Sky communities are one step closer to using Hotel Occupancy Tax (HOT) dollars for infrastructure meant to reduce light pollution. House Bill (HB) 4158, authored by State Rep. Erin Zwiener (D-Driftwood), would give Dark Sky communities more...
A creek flowing to the Colorado River turned black. Now the state has sued the alleged polluter.
ALTAIR — For more than two months, the waters of Skull Creek have flowed black, its surface covered in an iridescent sheen. Yellowed fish skeletons line the pebbled banks of the Colorado River tributary, and a dizzying chemical odor hangs in the air. The odor is so...
Oil or property rights: House panel clashes over which to favor as it weighs eminent domain reforms
Lawmakers, lobbyists and landowners sparred at a Capitol committee hearing on Thursday over a batch of bills designed to protect property owners whose land may be seized by private companies to build oil and gas pipelines. A bipartisan — though largely Republican —...
Two Views: In pipeline politics, love of the land is a shared value
We can be fairly certain that gas pipeline giant Kinder Morgan didn’t have this consequence in mind when it decided to route a massive, nearly four-foot diameter gas pipeline through the Texas Hill Country and over the fragile Edwards Aquifer. That consequence is a...
Dr. Robert Mace to receive Texas Rainmaker Award
Texas Water Foundation is honored to announce the 6th recipient of the Texas Rainmaker Award – Dr. Robert Mace. The Award is given to leaders who have made exceptional contributions and long-lasting impact to promote sustainable water policies in Texas. On May 7,...