News
Stargazing under Texas’ Dark Skies
In fall 2015, Hill Country Alliance asked the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture to conduct a study and offer recommendations to keep the stars in the Lone Star sky truly big and bright. At the time, the population of the Hill Country was 3.4...
Texas Winegrowers Fear New Herbicides Will Wipe Out Industry
As Paul Bonarrigo watched his grapevines dwindle, he was confident that heavy-duty herbicides, probably sprayed on crops by a nearby farmer, were drifting into his vineyards. For the past two years, his 44 acres in Hale County – once sprawling vineyards providing...
Director’s Notes: December 2016
Warm Wishes for the Holiday Season! As 2016 winds to a close, I have found myself both reflecting on the significant milestones that HCA achieved in the past 12 months as well as looking ahead to the promise of all that 2017 holds. Sitting in the audience at a Rural...
It’s not just Corpus Christi – Water infrastructure is a problem across Texas
Officials lifted the three-and-a-half day ban on the use of tap water in Corpus Christi on Sunday. Residents can now use the water for drinking, showering and washing clothes and dishes. The source of the contamination has been linked to a nearby asphalt plant, but...
Hill Country Land Trust Video: Reading the Land
The Hill Country Land Trust has released their fourth video in a series of videos on land management topics. Reading the Land explains the importance of knowing how to interpret the condition of your land by acquiring an intimate, knowledge of plants, soils, animals...
Arctic cold front sweeps across Texas
"When the arctic cold front blew through Austin area Saturday evening, the temperature at Camp Mabry dropped from 68 degrees at 7:00 pm to 42 degrees by 9:00 pm. That was a drop of 26 degrees in 2 hours! By midnight the temperature had dropped all the way to 34...
Opinion: San Antonio needs strong stormwater policies
How long will San Antonio residents be required to subsidize the city’s developers at the cost of our own safety, health and pocketbooks? Except for a few visionaries, our city representatives and staff continue to be appallingly shortsighted and reactionary,...
Effort to fight Arundo ramps up along Hill Country rivers
A coalition of government and nonprofit conservation groups is expanding the war on Arundo (Arundo donax), an invasive plant that threatens to take over scenic Hill Country rivers. It’s one aspect of a broader statewide effort made possible by a record $6.3 million to...
Hill Country Science Mill Bridges the Urban/Rural Divide
With the holidays upon us, many families will be staring at blank calendar days, wondering what to do with restless kids. A trip to the Hill Country Science Mill is a welcome alternative to the sugar-fueled, gift-obsessed holiday vortex. In addition to a day of family...
Black-capped vireo no longer considered endangered
In the latest turn in the divisive saga involving rare Central Texas species, the population of a songbird has recovered enough for it to move off the endangered species list, U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials announced Wednesday. The lifting of habitat protections for...
EPA Raises Questions About Dripping Springs Wastewater
Onion Creek may yet dodge the bullet – more precisely, the treated wastewater discharge requested by the city of Dripping Springs as an alternative to the current practice of spraying the effluent on land, where it is less likely to pollute nearby creeks. The U.S....
Hill Country Alliance hosts government planning session
The Hill Country Alliance recently hosted a public forum in which government officials from Bandera, San Antonio, Austin and other Texas Hill Country communities came together to discuss implementing plans they have for their cities. The points of the forum were to...
Native fish and wildlife belong to all Texans
Texas is known for its vast land and abundant wildlife and fish, resources available for all to enjoy through hunting, fishing or wildlife viewing. Conservation of these resources for future generations results from a uniquely North American approach viewed as the...
Were hundreds of endangered salamanders stolen from a San Marcos lab?
Between 250 and 300 endangered salamanders disappeared from the San Marcos Aquatic Resources Center during the Thanksgiving holiday, baffling biologists and leaving them scrambling to replace backup populations kept on hand in case of a die-off in the wild. The...
Urban sprawl encroaching on San Antonio’s untouched natural areas
Thomas Hille follows a simple rule when he jogs along the winding trails of Friedrich Wilderness Park, an oasis of untouched land near the busy Interstate 10 corridor on the far Northwest Side. “If you always turn left, you never get lost,” Hille said with a laugh as...
Public trust doctrine at center of fight against privatization
By Colleen Schreiber, Livestock Weekly The Texas Foundation for Conservation, a new nonprofit, is joining the fight to protect Texas fish and wildlife for future generations. Opposed to privatization of wildlife, the group applauds the founders of the North...
Workman: The future of water in Texas
During the recent drought, my office heard constantly from people concerned about the lack of water in our lakes. But now that the lakes are full and people are enjoying their boats and beautiful sunsets, a lot of people seem to be under the impression that we are out...
Can you water your landscape less and still have thriving plants?
What if there was a way to irrigate less but still have good-looking landscapes? Thanks to research results recently published by the Texas A&M Institute of Renewable Natural Resources (IRNR) and the Texas Water Resources Institute (TWRI), homeowners and...
If these walls could talk
The pictographs of the Pecos River have lasted millennia in a tempestuous desert, surviving mostly in silence. Now an archaeologist has cracked the code — and they can begin to speak again. September 12, 2012, was a long day, but a good one. For Carolyn Boyd it...
Plans withdrawn for 11-story Spicewood Springs hotel
An application to build a controversial 11-story hotel on Spicewood Springs Road has been temporarily withdrawn, according to an Austin city councilwoman. In an email message to her constituents, Sheri Gallo, who represents District 10, said developer David Kahn made...
Crazy ants are the new fire ants (and possibly worse)
The big problem in Texas: no local species appears to beat crazy ants. Hoping to underscore his point about a new pestilence that has arrived in Central Texas, ant researcher Edward LeBrun pointed to a Mason jar in his office. The jar looked like it was filled with...
Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge adds 520-acre property
The Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge grew by 520 acres this week with the addition of a coveted piece of Hill Country land known as Peaceful Springs. The parcel, south of Liberty Hill about 45 miles northwest of downtown Austin, features rolling hills,...
Public Fishing Access Areas Open Friday on Guadalupe River
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) has signed temporary lease agreements with four Guadalupe River property owners to expand public access to the trout fishery downstream of Canyon Lake. Public fishing access will be available at Rio Guadalupe Resort...
Cibolo Nature Center and Herff Farm Where it’s going and where it’s been
On Monday, November 28 a presentation about Cibolo Nature Center and Farm was made to County Judge Darrel Lux and the Commissioner’s court. John Schilhab, President of the board of trustees, accompanied by Executive Director and Founder Carolyn Chipman Evans, gave a...
Commentary: Digital billboards are more trouble than some may suggest
In the recently published commentary, “Texas cities should upgrade billboard laws for digital age,” Russ Horton suggested that Austin and other Texas cities quickly “consider carefully crafting” digital sign agreements with sign owners or “find themselves left behind...
With Texas Building Boom Comes Higher Flood Risk
Over the years, planners, engineers, water quality experts and others have come to recognize how urban development can drastically alter the landscape and exacerbate flooding. The culprit, many experts believe, is impervious cover — the massive buildings, commercial...
Director’s Notes – November 2016
November 2016: Giving Thanks - Just like that, Fall is in full swing in the Hill Country and the gorgeous cooler weather reminds us the holidays will soon be here. November is a month for giving thanks, and I appreciate the opportunity to share with all of you a few...
How Urban Trees Can Save Lives
Heatwaves are one of the world's most underestimated threats, killing more than 12,000 people every year around the world—more than any other weather-related event. And heat is especially dangerous in cities, which tend to be much warmer than surrounding...
85th Texas Legislature – Committees discuss water issues as they prepare for next session
Are you curious what water topics will be discussed, debated and voted on during the upcoming 85th Texas legislative session? While it is still early, the following information will help you stay current on legislative activities. In between sessions, interim charges...
Dripping Springs residents oppose Onion Creek wastewater discharge
The city of Dripping Springs and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality listened to dozens of north Hays County residents and community members speak against a proposed permit that could allow the city to discharge up to 955,000 gallons of wastewater into Onion...