News & Updates
New Camp Bullis Sentinel Landscape Seeks to strengthen military readiness, natural resource conservation, and agricultural productivity
San Antonio, Texas – One of the nation’s newest Sentinel Landscape recognitions has been awarded to the area surrounding Joint Base San Antonio-Camp Bullis. The national recognition, the first ever in Texas, will open significant new financial resources to protect...
NRI releases Texas landowner survey to examine status of working lands and needs of land managers.
The Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute’s Texas Land Trends program released the 2022 Landowner Survey for landowners who own or operate private working lands in Texas. This voluntary questionnaire serves to gather information on the needs, preferences,...
72 acres of Blanco river open space protected forever.
We are excited to announce the completion of a 72-acre donated conservation easement of native habitat and open space along the Blanco River in rapidly growing Hays County. The conservation easement on Cathedral Oaks Preserve protects native habitats, water quality,...
Amid troubling UN climate report, Texas ecologist says we have to act fast to adapt to a warming planet.
On Monday, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a new report, sounding the alarm again on the rapid warming of the planet. The publication asserts, in part, that the impacts of global warming are now simply “irreversible.”But there are still...
Parks board continues weighing Zilker Park outreach efforts
The fabled adage, “Please all and you will please none,” seems to be an apt description of many of the city’s community engagement endeavors, with the ongoing outreach around the Zilker Metropolitan Park Vision Plan serving as a timely example. Read more from Amy...
State of the Hill Country Report reveals threats to the region
DRIPPING SPRINGS, Texas — Booming population growth and sprawling development, groundwater depletion, changing climate patterns, extreme droughts and floods, and a unique set of policy challenges threaten the natural resources that define the Hill County...
THE ALEXANDER FARM and Hill Country Conservancy collaborate to preserve historic Black- owned farm in Travis County
The descendants of one of the founding African American families of Austin are celebrating their collaboration with Hill Country Conservancy (HCC) as together they’ve worked to further preserve the Alexander's ancestral farm and homestead. Through a combination of the...
Recycling center planned for Fair Oaks Ranch property runs afoul of local laws, residents
A New Braunfels company hoping to open a recycling plant on a property in Fair Oaks Ranch may be permanently sidelined because it didn’t request approvals or permits beforehand. Tobin Maples, the city manager of Fair Oaks Ranch, which is located northwest of San...
Roy Creek Canyon has been untouched for 80 years. Its owners want it to stay that way.
When Lew Adams’ father bought half of Roy Creek Canyon in the early 1940s, he entered into a handshake agreement with the friend who had purchased the other half. Both men promised to preserve the land and change as little as possible. “There's been no cattle, no...