Our Work
Land
HCA’s Land Program seeks to increase private land stewardship and permanent land conservation across the Hill Country, and works with regional land trusts to educate owners about conservation easements, track conservation metrics, and consider conservation priorities.
Water
HCA’s Water Program assists grassroots groups that champion water stewardship in their communities, advocates for policies that protect groundwater and surface water, and promotes resilient water supplies through the advancement of One Water projects.
Night Sky
HCA’s Night Skies Program helps Hill Country counties and cities minimize the impacts of light pollution through education and outreach, the establishment of outdoor lighting policies, and the recognition and celebration of certified Dark Sky Places in our region.
Communities
HCA’s Communities Program builds connections across county lines, supporting rural leaders in protecting the unique character of their communities while promoting innovative approaches to building healthy, vibrant communities throughout the Texas Hill Country.
The Latest
Texas Added Some 3 Million People Between 2010 and 2017. Here’s Where They Came From.
The constant drumbeat we hear from the national media is that Texas is the big destination inside the United States. More people are moving from other parts of the U.S. to Texas than to anywhere else. Related: New Census Data: Greater SA Home to 2 of Nation’s...
WTCPUA mulls Hamilton Pool Road water quality, The Backyard
Within a span of 24 hours, West Travis County Public Utility Agency board members hosted a town hall meeting, announced improvements slated for the coming year, approved water quality protections for the Hamilton Pool Road corridor and agreed to take a hard stance on...
Vulcan and TCEQ take heat at public hearing on concrete plant permit
Vulcan Materials has come under intense public criticism for its plan to open a concrete batch plant near a school in Kendall County, but The complaints came to a head last week at the agency’s public hearing on the requested permit for the plant, the final chance for...
Texas is making billions from oil and gas drilling, but counties say rural roads are being destroyed
Texas leads the nation in both oil and natural gas production. In the 2017 budget year, the oil production tax brought the state more than $2 billion in revenue, while the natural gas production tax brought in a little less than $1 billion. But none of that tax money...
Hill Country groups wanting more local land-use control
As the second fastest-growing county in the country according to U.S. Census Bureau data, Comal County, like others in the Hill Country, is coming face to face with industries that want to set up shop on land that is becoming more and more precious. Annalisa Peace,...
New Braunfels Utilities seeks community support for Headwaters project
Along the fault line that separates the Texas Hill Country from the Texas Coastal Plain, the largest freshwater spring system in Texas emerges from the ground in New Braunfels. New Braunfels Utility owns the 16-acre spot in the northwest part of town where the spring...