News
Where have Austin’s Indigenous people gone?
It’s almost a rarity these days to be considered an Austin native, rather than falling into the transplant pool.Hayley Bishop is, indeed, one of those born-and-raised Austinites. But they struggle with identifying as, what some would consider, a local native.“Like, I...
‘There’s been historic flooding and neglect’: San Antonio councilwomen aim to improve drainage
One San Antonio resident said water builds up seven or eight feet high after heavy rain. Another compared their street to the Amazon River. Dozens shared their flooding experiences last fall with the city’s drainage bond committee, a group appointed by City Council to...
Growth in unincorporated areas of Kendall County
As the new State of the Hill Country Report illustrates, the Hill Country population has increased by 50% since 1990, with most of this growth occurring along the I-35 corridor. The fastest growing counties are Hays County with 195% growth, and both Comal and Kendall...
You can get a permit to dump treated wastewater into Barton Creek. Some are trying to change that.
Several conservationist groups are banding together to stop treated effluent from getting into certain waterways in Texas, including Barton and Onion creeks.That means human waste where pollutants have been removed.Currently, the Texas Commission on Environmental...
The Hill Country Alliance presents Spring Water Revival: Splash into learning, spring into action.
Spring in the Hill Country is a time of blooming wildflowers, flowing creeks, and (hopefully) the arrival of long-awaited rains. This spring, the Hill Country Alliance (HCA) has announced the first annual Spring Water Revival – a month long, springtime celebration of...
TCEQ denies petition to create rule against issuing wastewater discharge permits on pristine streams
While some Texans spent Wednesday’s warm temperatures outdoors enjoying Barton Creek, others spent the day indoors fighting on its behalf. At a public meeting Wednesday morning, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) heard comments on a petition filed by...
Is Texas Hill Country in danger of being ‘loved to death’?
Deep in the heart of Texas, the traffic is backed up for almost a mile. It’s a jarring sight for long-time residents of the Hill Country, a rural oasis of scrubby green hills, crystalline water, and bright white limestone west of Austin and San Antonio. But it’s not...
Groups fight to limit sewage lines over Edward’s recharge zone.
Local environmentalists do not want to see sewage lines or a wastewater plant built for a new development constructed over the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone — a matter that was driven home during the San Antonio Water System’s monthly board of trustees meeting...
Open Space is the key to keep the Hill Country thriving
Editorial by Frank Davis, Hill Country Conservancy Anyone who is familiar with the natural areas of the Texas Hill Country will attest to their beauty and wondrous nature. Crystal clear spring-fed streams, steep canyons and bluffs, majestic forests, and...
Hill Country fires contained after dry conditions spark blazes.
Kerr County fire departments battled two blazes over the weekend as a result of high winds and dry conditions in the Hill Country. Both fires are almost 100% contained as of Monday, March 28, according to Kerr County officials. Read more from Gabriel Romero at...
State of the Hill Country Report reveals threats to the region.
Booming population growth and sprawling development, groundwater depletion, changing climate patterns, extreme droughts and floods, and a unique set of policy challenges threaten the natural resources that define the Hill County region—resources on which millions of...
‘State of the Hill Country’ looks at effects of population boom
Population in the Texas Hill Country is expected to double within the next 30-35 years with most of the newcomers settling into unincorporated areas, according to to a recent report by the Texas Hill Country Conservation Network. The report looks at eight key metrics...
Tracking The Health Of The Hill Country
The Hill Country Conservation Network developed a set of matrices to examine the current state of conservation and growth in the Hilll Country. Photo provided by Hill Country Conservation Network Read more from San Marcos Daily Records here.
Conservation organization releases report on health of local environment
A recently released report from the Texas Hill Country Conservation Network examined the current state of conservation and growth in the Hill Country. What it revealed was a region at a crossroads, facing threats to its future. Read more from Madi Teleschow at...
Conservation and growth are focus of ‘State of the Hill Country’.
The Texas Hill Country Conservation Network is made of dozens of non-profits, government agencies, academic institutions and aligned private businesses from across the 18-counties in the region. The Network wants to continue to see growth, but also protect the areas...
Wildfire risk remains high for much of Texas in the days ahead, fire officials say.
Much of Texas is at an elevated risk of wildfires this weekend and early next week because of higher-than-usual temperatures and a worsening drought, according to Texas A&M Forest Service analysts and the state climatologist. At the same time, vegetation that grew...
Spring Water Revival: Splash into learning, spring into action
A month of education, outreach, and action for Hill Country water. Spring in the Hill Country is a time of blooming wildflowers, flowing creeks, and (hopefully) the arrival of long-awaited rains. This spring, the Hill Country Alliance (HCA) is proud to announce the...
Hill Country Alliance 16th annual photo contest: Snapshot of the Hill Country
The Texas Hill Country is changing. The scenic beauty and abundant natural resources that have brought folks to Central Texas for thousands of years are at risk of being loved to death. As a recently released report from the Texas Hill Country Conservation Network...
Unsafe Yield Severe drought, dead wells, political division push Arizona steadily closer to water supply peril.
When it comes to water in a county where groundwater is the sole source for irrigation and drinking, and where demand is racing ahead of supply, the boundaries of politics and ideology can change. Clear proof has emerged in recent years of the serious consequences of...
In the Hill Country, it’s always wine o’clock
The grapevines at Bending Branch Winery near the lazy Bruins Creek have dried up in the cold January air, and winery technician Melvin Mendez is still out pruning them, getting ready for the July-through-October harvest season. Despite the chill in the air, at noon...
Hill Country Alliance 16th annual photo contest: Snapshot of the Hill Country
Snapshot of the Hill Country – Our region is changing. Share your view! The Texas Hill Country is changing. The scenic beauty and abundant natural resources that have brought folks to Central Texas for thousands of years are at risk of being loved to death. As a...
Decision coming on airport shuttle Local consortium, Musk firm finalists for transit project.
The Alamo Regional Mobility Authority could decide Wednesday whether to pursue one of two proposals — including one from SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s tunneling company — to shuttle visitors between San Antonio International Airport and downtown. Austin-based the...
State of the Hill Country: Growth in unincorporated areas of Kendall County
Editorial by Ben Eldredge, Cibolo Center for Conservation As the new State of the Hill Country Report illustrates, the Hill Country population has increased by 50% since 1990, with most of this growth occurring along the I-35 corridor. The fastest growing counties are...
Invasive Aquatic Species Are Threatening Texas Waterways
Across the street from Sewell Park, while most people tried to get a suntan or go tubing on a cloudy day, a group of researchers worked to capture suckermouth armored catfish, an invasive species in the San Marcos River. The fish are seemingly invisible in the murky...
TESPA Comments on Potential Rock Crushing Facility on Needmore Ranch
For immediate release March 15, 2022 The Trinity Edwards Springs Protection Association (TESPA) is following the Proposed Air Quality permit application filed with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) seeking authorization to construct and operate a...
Federal recognition to advance conservation and military readiness around Camp Bullis
On the west side of Camp Bullis, at the edge of the Dominion neighborhood, Rustin Tabor pulls his truck to the side of a winding road and walks a few feet into the wooded area that lines it. Farther in, stretched across the dirt, is an entrance to a cave — a karst...
New report shows Texas Hill Country facing serious challenges tied to growth
The Hill Country has exploded over the past 20 years, growing by 50 percent to over 3.8 million people in the 18-county area north of San Antonio.That number is projected to increase another 35 percent in the next two decades. But all of that growth comes with a...
QuikTrip can move forward with gas station
The Helotes City Council has approved design plans of a proposed 24-hour gas station and convenience store on a rural stretch of road that some residents want to protect from commercial development. The 4-1 vote on Feb. 24 was not the final approval for the project,...
Population growth challenges Texas’ Hill Country
Booming population growth, coupled with changing climate patterns, unslakable groundwater thirst and political challenges, leave the Texas Hill Country newly vulnerable. What they're saying: "The Hill Country's breathtaking vistas, natural spaces, clear waters,...
Texas lawmakers must seize historic opportunity to transform the state’s fragile water infrastructure
Governor Abbott and Texas legislators should capitalize on the latest guidance from the Environmental Protection Agency and secure over $2 billion in allocated federal funds in order to transform the state’s fragile water infrastructure. “Texas’ water infrastructure...