News
San Marcos River reports first North American river otters in 70 years
Summertime is on the horizon and it is just about time to hop into Central Texas rivers to escape the heat. Meanwhile, a long-missed river animal is also heading back to the cool waters. Otter sightings have reportedly been happening in the area, marking a change from...
Why we have lawns
Many envision the ‘perfect’ American lawn as a lush, uniform green carpet that covers their outdoor space. But beneath this verdant facade lies a complex social history and significant environmental dilemma. The lawns that stretch across the United States, covering an...
Canyon Lake just set new record low water level, and it’s continuing to fall
South Texas has experienced a few thunderstorms over the past couple of weeks, bringing locally heavy rainfall and even a bit of hail into the region. San Antonio picked up 1.34 inches of rain on April 9-10, bringing the city’s 2024 total up to 9.96 inches. That is...
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick asks state to halt new cement plant permits until 2025
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has asked the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the state’s environmental agency, to halt approving permits for cement production plants in Texas until the 2025 legislative session. Patrick’s letter to TCEQ Chair Jon Niermann on Tuesday...
NWF Wins Environmental Flow Protections in the Guadalupe River Basin
A Travis County District Court Judge ruled in favor of the National Wildlife Federation, reversing the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s decision to issue a water rights permit to the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority (“GBRA”). The permit would have allowed...
Comal County adopts parks and open space plan
What began more than a year ago as an initiative to secure grant funding for Comal County sports fields culminated Thursday in a lengthy — and at times heated — discussion among commissioners and residents about the role of government, property rights, and natural...
Don’t throw away those eclipse glasses. Here’s how to recycle them in Austin.
Once the eclipse has come and gone, you might be tempted to throw out your viewing glasses. The next total solar eclipse in Central Texas won’t be for at least 300 more years. But that doesn’t mean eclipses won’t happen elsewhere in the world. Read more from Luz...
Hill Country’s eclipse worries: Jammed roads, supply shortages
As local officials prepare for an influx of their own, they’ve been reviewing reports from the last eclipse and finishing up their own emergency plans — and warning local residents who can stay home to hunker down and stay out of the chaos. “We’ve been planning for...
‘Our lakes are drying up’: Central Texas Water Coalition urges Lakeway residents to conserve
Lakeway residents were urged to conserve water during a presentation by the Central Texas Water Coalition—an organization focused on protecting the water supply in the Highland Lakes—at a City Council meeting March 18. In July, Travis County officials sent a request...
In protecting darkness, conservation finds new light
For land trusts that want to protect dark skies, the good news is this: They already do plenty to combat light pollution. By protecting undeveloped land with little human habitation, they inherently preserve darkness, at no added cost. And, when compared to problems...
Ahead of the solar eclipse, Hill Country towns are bracing for chaos
The urgency is partly because of the rarity of the phenomenon: the next total solar eclipse to be visible in continental U.S. won’t arrive until 2044. And the Hill Country may be an especially attractive destination because the region is enviably pleasant in the...
‘Tourism on steroids’: Eclipse can be economic boon for Hill Country
When a rare total eclipse darkens the Texas sky on April 8, it’s expected to draw in as many as 1 million out-of-state visitors. Those visitors are expected to inject millions of dollars into the state’s economy — and a big chunk of that will be spent in the Hill...
2023 Hill Country Alliance Annual Report
In 2023, the Hill Country Alliance hosted, convened, or presented at more than 160 events and connected with a digital audience of 20,300. HCA released an unprecedented number of new tools, reports, and guides in 2023 and reached broad audiences across Texas, with...
Why Austinites should embrace a ‘summer blonde’ lawn during a drought
Spring is practically upon us, meaning it's just about time to clear out the flowerbeds and start planning the year's garden. But with increasingly unpredictable rainfall and extended droughts, it may be worth considering plants with lower water needs — especially...
Texas springs in crisis: New study highlights overwhelming increase in dry springs
New research from The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment at Texas State University uncovers a concerning decline in the state’s groundwater resources, finding that the number of dry springs has nearly tripled since the early 1980s. Co-authored by Robert E....
What is an aquifer? Here’s how they affect Texas’ water supply.
I’m pretty sure I learned about aquifers in a middle school classroom during a science unit on the water cycle. But, like most people, I’ve entirely forgotten what I learned or didn't pay close attention. But in the last few years, since I started covering Hays...
Unique AFCEC projects help installations stay mission ready
Several unique environmental resilience projects spearheaded by the Air Force Civil Engineer Center are helping installations maintain readiness as climate change uncertainties threaten to disrupt operations. The shoreline adjacent to Keesler Air Force Base is a part...
In Garden Ridge, residents fight a quarry’s expansion plans
As she rides down FM 2252, Lisa Swint gestures out the window to the wall of dirt, rock and debris piled high beside the road. “It’s starting to be kind of the hallmark look of Garden Ridge,” said Swint, a City Council member in the Comal County town of about 4,000...
Just six years from now, Georgetown may not have enough water for everyone
Georgetown, the fastest growing city in the U.S. and home to more than 86,000 people, must find a new water source by 2030 in order to avoid supply shortages, according to a city report. It's something Jonathan Moore thinks about a lot. Read more from Kailey Hunt with...
Another hot and dry summer? The Climate Prediction Center says so
While many of us have enjoyed this winter of wetter, cooler weather, especially when it comes to improving drought conditions, do not expect this summer to be similar. This is a result of a shift to La Niña conditions forecast for the upcoming spring from our El Niño...
Single-use container ban in San Marcos parks is ‘definitely a win’ for the river
The City of San Marcos passed a “can ban” ordinance banning single-use beverage containers on the San Marcos River within city limits and in certain areas of city parks. This includes, but is not limited to, single-use containers made of metal, aluminum, cardboard,...
Pushback against wastewater disposal near Texas’ ‘best-kept secret’
A milk jug of muddy water accompanied one landowners comments at a meeting Monday night. The brown liquid was meant to represent effluent, wastewater that has been treated and then reused. Read more from Eric Henrikson with KXAN here.
Wimberley water agencies prepare to act against Aqua Texas for alleged violations
At a joint meeting Friday, conservation agencies shared their plan to act against water utility company Aqua Texas for allegedly failing to comply with local conservation guidelines. Read more from Mercedez Hernandez with KXAN here.
In the Hays County city of Kyle, swift growth stirs up a fight over wastewater
Environmental advocates are pushing back against the city of Kyle’s plan to expand its wastewater treatment plant — a step city leaders say is necessary to keep up with rapid population growth. Kyle — which is in northern Hays County, between San Marcos and Austin...
Camp Bullis protection program receives $502K grant
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation recently announced the awarding of a $502,000 grant that will fund a groundwater study as part of an initiative meant to protect the Camp Bulls military mission and the surrounding area. Read more from Edmond Ortiz with Community...
‘We need more’: Despite recent rains, San Antonio area still locked in drought
Parts of Central Texas, including San Antonio, have seen a rainy start to 2024, with more than six inches of precipitation in January. But the Bandera area has seen far less — just two inches in the past month. And that matters across the region, because many of the...
Majority of America’s underground water stores are drying up, study finds
Many of America’s critical sources of underground water are in a state of rapid and accelerating decline, a new study has found. More than half of the aquifers in the United States (53 percent) are losing water, according to research published Wednesday in Nature....
Another hot, dry summer may push parts of Texas to the brink
Two consecutive summers of brutal heat and drought have left some parts of Texas with notably low water supplies going into 2024. A wet year or a well-placed hurricane could quickly pull these regions back from the brink. But winter rains have disappointed so far....
Jacob’s Well was dry for seven months—One company just kept pumping
After sitting dry for 222 days, Jacob’s Well, the iconic artesian spring near Wimberley, has started to flow again. From mid-June through mid-January, the popular swimming hole was a miserable sight: the water level had receded below the lip of the well’s mouth,...
Texas companies reported releasing 1 million pounds of excess pollution during recent cold snap
Frigid weather this month caused industrial facilities across Texas to release unplanned air pollution as machinery froze, power went out and icy conditions blocked service crews. Over four chilly days between Jan. 14 and 17, companies submitted reports to Texas’...