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
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...
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