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
For Millennials, Hays County Is One of the Priciest Places to Rent
You've probably heard many reports on how expensive it is to live in Austin, but a new report finds that Hays County is one of the country's least affordable rental markets for millennials. Hays County follows the trend playing out in most major U.S. markets – it’s...
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...
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