COLLEGE STATION — Trinity Waters, formerly known as the Trinity Basin Conservation Foundation, has launched a new website to more effectively communicate with landowners and other residents of the Trinity River basin area.
Http://trinitywaters.org, activated on July 18, was developed by the Texas A&M Institute of Renewable Natural Resources in cooperation with Texas AgriLife Extension Service. Additional project collaboration and support was provided by Trinity Waters and the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board.
Trinity Waters is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization committed to land and water conservation by partnering with landowners to implement land management practices within the Trinity River basin.
“This is one informational and education outreach tool used as part of the broader Building Partnerships for Cooperative Conservation project in the Trinity River Basin,” explained Ashley Alexander, project manager with the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board. “We envision this as the primary means for area stakeholders to get information and find out who to contact about water and land management, as well as learn about what efforts are taking place in the watershed and how they can become involved in those efforts.”
The main purpose of the website is to make it easier for people, particularly landowners and land managers, to access a wealth of objective, reliable information on conservation practices to apply to their own land management strategies, said Blake Alldredge, AgriLife Extension associate appointed as the education and outreach coordinator for the new middle Trinity River project.
Rural landowners are not the only ones that gain from this website. Urban residents can also benefit from the information about water conservation and recreational opportunities within the basin. — Blake Alldredge, AgriLife Extension associate
“The new site also gives information on how to develop effective partnerships with other landowners, various organizations and agencies, along with highlighting ongoing conservation projects within the basin as Trinity Waters works to improve habitat and water quality to benefit humans, livestock, and wildlife,” he said.
Alldredge said website content also includes information on financial incentives for implementation of approved restoration and conservation practices; news and event updates; wildlife and livestock management techniques for improving animal health; and resources relating to land stewardship and natural resources education among area residents of all ages.
“Rural landowners are not the only ones that gain from this website,” Alldredge said. “Urban residents can also benefit from the information about water conservation and recreational opportunities within the basin.”
Major activities within the Trinity River basin include urbanization, commercial and industrial development, row-crop farming, livestock production, outdoor recreation and timber production. According to area planners, as the population served by the watershed continues to increase, municipal water use will increase, making it even more important to evaluate how this water resource is managed to address current and future water quantity and quality issues.
The Building Partnerships for Cooperative Conservation initiative in the Trinity River Basin project is funded by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board through a Clean Water Act §319(h) grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
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