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
In West Texas, abandoned well sinks land, sucks tax dollars
Land around a West Texas roadway used to be flat. Now, it’s fissured, sinking and has cost taxpayers more than a million dollars — all because of a water well that was left unplugged. The rusty pipe poking up from desert scrubland just south of Imperial would be easy...
Commentary: No One Gets Everything They Want in A Good City Bond
Leave it to former Mayor Phil Hardberger to summon a passage from the Book of Proverbs in support of the $850 million 2017 Municipal Bond and, in particular, the $13 million in public funding for the proposed $23 million Hardberger Land Bridge. We will see if voters...
Landowners, Aquifer Alliance win battle over TCEQ permit
Landowners in Comal County took a victory Tuesday in a long-running case against a state agency’s permit allowing a subdivision next door to release treated wastewater onto area land. The plaintiffs, including landowners and the Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance, have...
Protecting the drops we drink: Who owns Texas water?
This post from The Eagle, a Bryan-College Station paper, covers some of the fundamentals of water management and ownership in the state of Texas. As you can see, it gets complicated, fast. Even more complicated when you consider that all three types of water...
Charles Butt Invests $100 Million in New Education Leadership Institute
A group of education leaders that includes Ruth Simmons, the first African- American president of an Ivy League university, gathered in Austin Tuesday morning to announce the establishment of the Holdsworth Center for Excellence in Education Leadership. The public...
Record Breaking Attendance at Texas State Parks’ Annual First Day Hikes
This past New Year’s Day, nearly 4,000 park visitors statewide walked, biked, swam and paddled their way into 2017 as part of Texas State Parks’ annual First Day Hikes events. First Day Hikes events are a national initiative to get park visitors to start their year on...