The mission of the Hill Country Alliance is to bring together a diverse coalition of partners to preserve the open spaces, starry night skies, clean and abundant waters, and unique character of the Texas Hill Country.
Our Work
Land
The Texas Hill Country region covers over 11 million acres in 17 counties of mostly privately held land.
Water
Thirteen Texas rivers begin in the Hill Country and provide water for millions of downstream neighbors.
Night Sky
The Hill Country sits on the edge of night and as development pushes westward, we are losing our view of the night sky.
Community
90% of Hill Country lands are in unincorporated areas where there is little authority to plan for growth.
Collaboration
HCA serves as the backbone organization and fiscal sponsor of the Texas Hill Country Conservation Network.
Latest News
SwRI, UTSA researchers map Edwards Aquifer with innovative new tracers
August 7, 2018 — Researchers from Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) and The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) are using unique DNA-based tracers to characterize the recharge and flow patterns in the Edwards Aquifer. The work, led by Dr. Ronald Green of...
$76 million resort coming to Fredericksburg
Fredericksburg is already a hot spot for visitors — and developers and city tourism officials say a planned $76 million hotel project will help take the Hill Country city to the next level. Construction is scheduled to start on the Seven Hills Resort and Conference...
Pape: State ‘betrays’ Bastrop County by allowing Cedar Creek waste site
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has approved a permit for a waste transfer station proposed in Cedar Creek despite strong opposition from residents, the Capital Area Council of Governments and Bastrop County and state officials. “We have been betrayed by...
Here’s how America uses its land
There are many statistical measures that show how productive the U.S. is. Its economy is the largest in the world and grew at a rate of 4.1 percent last quarter, its fastest pace since 2014. The unemployment rate is near the lowest mark in a half century. What can be...
‘Orphan’ oil, gas wells are problem
So-called “orphan” oil and gas wells, which have been abandoned by defunct companies that cannot pay to plug them, are a growing problem in many states thanks to a recent slump in energy prices that has forced marginal operators out of business. Nobody knows how many...
How gas flare-offs could bring water
One of the biggest freshwater reservoirs in the worlds is, literally, up in the air. Between 6 and 18 million gallons of freshwater hover above every square mile of land, not counting droplets trapped in clouds. Scientists realized this centuries ago but they have...
In Wimberley, a fight bubbles up over sewage and a beloved swimming hole
In November 2012, more than 100,000 gallons of sewage spilled into Plum Creek near Kyle. The partially treated sewage was managed by a private company, Aqua Texas. Now, about 18 miles away in Wimberley, a newly elected city council is considering hiring the same...
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