March 29, 2012

Writer: Rod Santa Ana
Contacts: Jeff Stapper, 361-767-5223, jstapper@ag.tamu.edu

CORPUS CHRISTI  –  The Texas AgriLife Extension Service and several co-sponsors will conduct a Water Conference from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 13 at the Del Mar Economic Development Center, 3209 S. Staples Road in Corpus Christi.

The watershed that supplies the city’s municipal water supply is reaching critical level, and conservation measures will likely be required, according to Jeff Stapper, AgriLife Extension agent in Nueces County.

“Just because we’ve had some rain recently doesn’t mean we’re out of the drought,” Stapper said. “Lake levels at Choke Canyon and Lake Corpus Christi remain low, and as water demands continue to grow with summer approaching, conserving water needs to be everyone’s concern.”

To help address the issue, citizens are urged to attend the Water Conference, he said. Registration fee is $10 payable at the door, and includes a noon meal and conference supplies. Pre-registration is required by calling 361-767-5223 or 361-767-5217.

“The conference will focus on methods to conserve water in the home, landscape and business,” Stapper said. “We’ll also review the current water-supply levels and projections for the coming months, along with possible water-use restrictions.”

Other topics of discussion will include the use of EarthKind practices to conserve water in home landscapes, improving water-use efficiency with irrigation audits, harvesting rainwater at homes and businesses, and the protection of groundwater and watershed resources.

“Living so close to it, we often hear that if we could remove the salt from water in the Gulf of Mexico our water problems would be history,” Stapper said. “So, we’ll have an update on developments in desalination technology by David Burnett, director of technology of GPRI (Global Petroleum Research Institute) and a research coordinator at Texas A&M University.”

The conference will conclude with a spring rainfall outlook presented by National Weather Service staff.

Two Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units will be offered for licensed private pesticide applicators and six units will be offered to participants who are Master Gardeners or Texas Master Naturalists.

For more information on the conference, contact the AgriLife Extension office of Nueces County at 361-767-5223.