Marble Falls, Granger added to statewide list of lakes infested with Zebra Mussels

December 16, 2019
Legislature and Regulation

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) has added Lake Marble Falls and Granger Lake to the statewide list of lakes infested with invasive zebra mussels after discovering established, reproducing populations in the lakes this fall. Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) biologists confirmed the presence of zebra mussels in Lake Marble Falls after finding settled zebra mussels as well as their larvae at multiple sites in the lake. After Lake Lyndon B. Johnson was found to be infested with zebra…

Wild pigs increase their urban and suburban area sprawls

December 16, 2019
Land Conservation and Stewardship

Whether you call them wild pigs or feral hogs, they are no longer just a rural problem, according to a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service expert. Wild pigs cause more than $52 million in agricultural damage in Texas annually, said John Tomecek, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension wildlife specialist, Thrall. But it’s their encroachment into increasingly urbanized areas that is becoming a burgeoning problem for landowners and municipalities. Texas’ wild pig population was 2.6 million according to a 2012 study. Now experts…

Proposition will start state’s first flood fund

December 9, 2019
Land Conservation and Stewardship

After garnering the approval of voters, Texas has been given the go-ahead to create the state’s first flooding infrastructure fund. The fund is being established with a one-time injection of $793 million in funding from the state’s Economic Stabilization Fund—more commonly known as the Rainy Day Fund—after voters approved Proposition 8 on Nov. 5. However, state lawmakers can choose to add more money to the fund in the future, officials said. Read more from Community Impact Newspaper here.

Edwards Aquifer Protection Program and sales tax funding questions answered

December 9, 2019
Conservation Easements

A dialogue has emerged on the relative merits of programs apparently now competing for a future share of the City sales tax. This has included confusing statements about the Edwards Aquifer Protection Program (EAPP). As chair of the Conservation Advisory Board, the recommending body to City Council for the program, I’d like to clarify by addressing key questions. What does EAPP do and why is it important? In policy science jargon, the EAPP is an elegant response to a wicked…

Austin wastewater main break causes 100,000-gallon sewage spill

December 9, 2019
News

More than 100,000 gallons of wastewater flowed into a dry tributary bed of Bull Creek after there was a 21’’ main break and sanitary sewage overflow, according to Austin Water crews. The overflow was discovered at 11:30 a.m. Sunday at 10801 Sierra Oaks. Austin Water says its crews were able to stop the leak by about 9:00 a.m. Monday and finished working on repairs, clean up and recovery by 5 p.m. Austin Water managing Engineer Kevin Koeller says the wastewater…

U.S. House Natural Resources Committee passes landmark wildlife conservation bill out of committee

December 9, 2019
Habitat Conservation Plans

The Texas Alliance for America’s Fish and Wildlife applauds the House Committee on Natural Resources for a bipartisan vote last week on the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act. The bill passed out of committee following a 26-6 vote and will now move to the House Floor. H.R.3742 would be one of the most significant pieces of wildlife funding legislation passed in over 80 years — it would help reverse the decline in our nation’s fish and wildlife and protect our natural…

‘I don’t believe it’s in until it’s in’: Gillespie County landowner still fighting pipeline

December 9, 2019
Land Conservation and Stewardship

“This is Texas, by God. I am fifth generation Texan and I am not going to roll over for a multi-billion dollar company,” says Kay Pence. She has been fighting Kinder Morgan for more than a year now. The company offered her $45,000 to run part of the Permian Highway Pipeline through her property. “Our appraisal is based on what we’ll actually be physically touching,” explains Allen Fore, Kinder Morgan vice president of public affairs. Pence and many other landowners…

Residents near Hamilton Pool up in arms about proposed RV park

December 6, 2019
Land Conservation and Stewardship

The Travis County Commissioners Court spent all morning Tuesday discussing a proposed RV park on Stagecoach Ranch Road in Southwest Travis County, near Hamilton Pool. The court still hasn’t come to a decision on the matter and will take it up again at next week’s meeting. Just as they did for another RV park on Fitzhugh Road last month, county staffers proposed waiving certain platting requirements that are imposed on traditional subdivisions involving brick-and-stick homes. Staff members have taken the…

Report: Texas ranks second in budget cuts for environmental protection

December 6, 2019
Land Conservation and Stewardship

In the past decade, a historic industrial buildout has taken hold in Texas — thanks to the fracking revolution — and has created vast wealth and greatly increased the need for government permitting of new facilities, as well as pollution monitoring. But during the same time period, Texas lawmakers cut funding to the state agency responsible for doing those things by 35%, according to a new report from the Environmental Integrity Project, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit founded by former U.S.…

New bill will help preserve family farms

December 4, 2019
Land Conservation and Stewardship

A bill introduced today to help more farm families continue their livelihoods after the death of a loved one has the full support of the American Farm Bureau Federation. The Preserving Family Farms Act of 2019 is sponsored by Reps. Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.) and Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.). “Farm and ranch families often face a significant financial burden when they have to pay estate taxes,” said AFBF President Zippy Duvall. “Farm families should be able to pay based on how their land…