News
Commercial development along West Highway 71 moves forward in 2018
In late 2017, the Spillman family, descendants of Hill Country pioneers and namesakes of Spillman Ranch, put under contract 20 acres of land located at 14310 W. Hwy. 71 in the city of Bee Cave, Realtor Jerry Stein said. As part of the sale the family will retain 4...
South Llano River State Park to Hold First Annual Birding Festival
South Llano River State Park is excited to announce its First Annual Birding Festival, sponsored by the Friends of South Llano River State Park, to be held Friday, April 27 through Sunday, April 29th, 2018. The Festival will feature guided bird walks, including...
Save the Date: 2018 Kent Butler Summit, Apr. 4 in San Marcos
Save your space now! The 4th Kent Butler Summit is being planned for April 4th 2018. With a theme of Pipes, People, Pavement, and the Future of Water in the Hill Country, we will cover some of the major issues determining the future of our region and its resources....
Directors notes – January 2018
As we start a new year, I am looking forward to what 2018 holds for all of us and the Hill Country. Last year was a record-breaking year for HCA – which included the largest year-end giving campaign for HCA. Thank you to the more than 70 families that donated more...
Uvalde County water district sues over change in Edwards Aquifer rules
The Uvalde County Underground Water Conservation District is suing the Edwards Aquifer Authority over water-rights rules that the district said would threaten the amount of groundwater available to property owners west of San Antonio. The lawsuit centers on a...
Area groups, citizens have conservation conversations
As one of the fastest-growing counties in the nation with 10,000 or more residents, according to Census Bureau statistics, officials say land conservation is a topic of concern in Comal County. The Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance, the Hill Country Alliance and the...
Landowners association to hear speakers
The Ranchers and Landowners Association of Texas will begin its 2018 membership year with an informative pair of speakers at a meeting scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 23, at the Bandera Electric Cooperative Community Room. Jimmy Gaines, president of the Texas Land...
Cape Town Is 90 Days Away From Running Out of Water
After three years of unprecedented drought, the South African city of Cape Town has less than 90 days worth of water in its reservoirs, putting it on track to be the first major city in the world to run out of water. Unless residents drastically cut down on daily use,...
Dye tests show connection between Onion Creek and Middle Trinity
Initial results from an ongoing study have found Onion Creek is “hydrologically connected” to the Middle Trinity Aquifer, according to a memo to the Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Conservation District (BSEACD). Doug Wierman, an independent geoscientist working with...
Panhandle Roadkill White-tailed Deer Tests Positive for Chronic Wasting Disease
A roadkill white-tailed deer collected by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department personnel on U.S. Highway 87 between Dalhart and Hartley has tested positive for chronic wasting disease. This marks the first discovery of CWD in a Texas roadkill and the first case in a...
Report: Almost 25,000 Texans Are Drinking Tap Water With High Levels of Radium
Water in the small Central Texas town of Brady has the highest radium levels in the state — almost double the legal limit set by the EPA, according to a new report. But Kim Lenoir, the city manager in charge of cleaning up Brady’s water supply, says she isn’t alarmed....
States Confront the Spread of a Deadly Disease in Deer
On the edge of a south-central Montana village, where deer hunting is a way of life, the game check station has become the front line of the state’s efforts to stop the spread of a deadly infection known as chronic wasting disease. It has ravaged deer herds throughout...
Conservationists form coalition
The Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance is asking the public for its ideas about how to create a coalition that would organize efforts to conserve open space in Comal County. The group says it wants to create a “critical mass” to realize shared goals at a planning...
Water 101 – Boerne Native Plant Society Of Texas Chapter Meeting
Boerne Native Plant Society of Texas Chapter Meeting February 6 at the Cibolo Nature Center in Boerne will feature Water 101. Water, essential for life, is our most precious and valuable natural resource. But water supply is limited and under increasing pressure from...
Challenges of Rapid Growth
What happens when an area known for its natural beauty and resources experiences rapid population growth? The Texas hill country is such an area, and the swift influx of people is resulting in a severe strain on resources. The Hill Country Alliance (HCA) is a group of...
New sewer system causes stir in Wimberley over fears it digs financial hole
A new sewer system that will only service half a city has some in Wimberley saying their leaders are digging a financial hole that will be hard to climb out of. The plan has been in place for years, but when an agenda item popped up this week claiming the city lost...
Judge Rules For Local Landowners In Groundwater Export Dispute
A state district judge in Bastrop has ruled in favor of four local landowners in a dispute over permits that allow massive amounts of groundwater to be pumped from Lee and Bastrop counties. Judge Carson Campbell’s January 4, 2018 order (see below) ruled that the Lost...
Despite rules, former Hays commissioner to remain at CAMPO board
The Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization board, the long-term planning group for the region’s roads and highways, took the eyebrow-raising action on Monday of making its leader a man who no longer holds public office. Former Hays County Commissioner Will...
In Dallas as in Phoenix, people look to trees for relief from urban heat islands
Few neighborhoods in America need trees more than South Oak Cliff, a sun-blasted shade desert in this rapidly warming Texas city. Like much of Phoenix, the south-side Dallas district lacks sufficient shade for comfort during summer and safety during heat waves, when...
Using the Airbnb Model to Protect the Environment
As the world’s population grows, so does demand for land. One upshot is that setting aside big tracts to protect endangered species and carbon-rich forests is increasingly expensive. Enter the Airbnb economic model. While it’s not a panacea, it provides attractive...
Bastrop County landowners can challenge groundwater permit, court says
Four Bastrop County landowners won a decisive court victory this week when a district judge decided he would allow them to challenge a permit to withdraw 15 billion gallons of groundwater annually from the Simsboro formation of the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer. The...
Seeing Stars in Dripping Springs
Dripping Springs’ municipal motto—“Gateway to the Hill Country”—suggests the city is westward-looking, more in tune with its rural roots than with the buzzing boomtown glowing like a giant arc lamp 25 miles to the east. Culturally, politically and ecologically, the...
San Antonio River, a City’s Pride, Yet Still Impaired
People in San Antonio are more educated about water conservation and management than anywhere else I have lived, and as the city’s Tricentennial approaches in May, people are understandably proud of the $384 million San Antonio River Improvements Project. The...
Be wary of border ‘takings’ for wall
Abuse is precisely what occurred when the government acquired border land a decade ago, including for a barrier in southernmost Texas, according to an investigation by the Texas Tribune and ProPublica. The reporting by T. Christian Miller of ProPublica and the Texas...
Ecologist challenges the myths about Cedar, Texas’ most hated tree
Every year, cedar fever descends on Central Texas, and with it comes a deep-seated, Texas-sized hate for the mountain cedar. “Cedar fever is not just any allergy,” wrote Patricia Sharpe in a 1986 issue of Texas Monthly. “It’s a scourge, a plague that smites the just...
$2B Veramendi development could add 7,000 jobs
Nearly a decade into planning and negotiations, the Veramendi master-planned development is “starting to heat up,” according to Stacy Snell, New Braunfels assistant director of planning and community development. At the end of several phases and with an estimated $2...
Ring in the new year with a 2 for 1 calendar sale!
Happy New Year from Hill Country Alliance! We are ringing in 2018 with a buy one get one sale on our 2018 Texas Hill Country Calendar! Now through Sunday, January 7 for each calendar you order online we'll include a second calendar for free! If you purchase 2...
Recovering America’s Wildlife Act Offers Exceptional Opportunity to Help Wildlife and Business in Texas and the Hill Country
With fish and wildlife populations under increasing pressure in Texas and throughout the country, Texans are hailing a new opportunity to reverse this trend. House bill 4647, known as the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act, would provide $1.3 billion annually from...
Aquifer Storage: City of Buda green-lights pilot study
Buda city leaders took another step toward implementing Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) with the approval of a pilot study meant to test the safety of the proposed project. On Dec. 5, the Buda City Council approved, by a 6-0 vote, a professional services agreement...
BEC Lights the Way in Dark-Sky Movement
Tony Tucci, BEC | In the dark field, you can barely see the telescopes and the groups of men and women gathered around them. They are amateur astronomers seeking the secrets of the sky. Light is their enemy, and they carefully guard against it. Most of them are...