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
2022 was Austin’s driest year since drought-stricken, heat-scorched 2011
While we were rightfully worried about the hard freeze that descended upon Texas just before Christmas, you might have missed the news that drought conditions across the state have eased to levels not seen in more than a year. Unfortunately, the improvement comes too...
Weather, climate, and measuring chili pepper heat
I know someone in public relations; she avoids topics such as religion, politics, and the weather. Religion and politics can be very personal and areas of possible dissent. Talking about the weather, she tells me, might seem safe, but might in its safety bore the very...
How to prevent the next water crisis
Cities and farmers in Central Texas used to pump groundwater from the Edwards Aquifer much more freely—draining local springs and rivers and depriving several endangered species of a habitat. In the 1990s, the Sierra Club sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on...
Smart meter monitoring can help conserve water — but not without a fight, researchers find
The use of smart meters to enforce water restrictions could encourage widespread conservation — but not without local backlash, a new study has found. Amid California’s ongoing drought, researchers partnered with the city of Fresno in summer 2018 to access and...
outlook+water: Drought continues to improve, La Niña’s days are numbered, reservoirs levels rising
Summary: 75% of the state is abnormally dry or worse, and 52% of the state is in drought Equal chances for La Niña or neutral conditions for the January-March season and a 71% chance of neutral conditions for the February-April season Reservoir storage is still 10%...
Failing infrastructure, drought and floods: Texas’ top 10 water stories of 2022
For Texas’ water sector, 2022 was a rough year. Stories about failing infrastructure, drought and even floods captured state headlines. Many of these stories were grim and endured by millions across the state. Texans had to live without or boil their water, flee...