Writer: Paul Schattenberg, 210-859-5752, paschattenberg@ag.tamu.edu
Contacts: Michael Kuitu, 979-862-4457, mkuitu@tamu.edu
Sam Silvers, 325-446-2620, gssilvers@ag.tamu.edu
Tyson Broad, 806-834-1170, tyson.broad@ttu.edu
JUNCTION – A Texas Watershed Steward workshop on water quality related to the Upper Llano River watershed will be presented from 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. May 6 at the Llano River Field Station, 254 Red Raider Lane in Junction.
The workshop is free and open to anyone interested in improving water quality in the region. Participants are encouraged to preregister at the Texas Watershed Steward website at http://tws.tamu.edu.
Program presenters are the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board in cooperation with the Llano River Field Station and Upper Llano Watershed Coordination Committee. Light refreshments will be provided.
“This workshop is designed to help watershed residents improve and protect their water resources by becoming involved in Llano River watershed protection and management activities,” said Michael Kuitu, College Station, AgriLife Extension program specialist and coordinator for the Texas Watershed Steward program.
The workshop will include a discussion of watershed systems, types and sources of water pollution, and ways to improve and protect water quality. There also will be a group discussion on community-driven watershed protection and management.
“The North and South Llano Rivers are integral in supporting a diverse aquatic habitat, exceptional aesthetics and water supply in the Texas Hill Country, said Tyson Broad, watershed coordinator for the Llano River Field Station of Texas Tech University in Junction. “Because of the Upper Llano’s importance, a watershed protection plan was proactively created to preserve and enhance the quality of its waters and the surrounding lands. We encourage local residents and other stakeholders to attend the workshop to gain information about water resources, water quality improvement and protection.”
“The workshop will include an overview of water quality and watershed management in Texas, but will provide an emphasis on area water quality, including current efforts to improve and protect the North and South Llano Rivers,” said Sam Silvers, AgriLife Extension agent for Kimble County. “It will address issues related to local water resources, such as land fragmentation and the spread of invasive species, but will be applicable to all waters in the region.”
Attendees of the workshop will receive a copy of the Texas Watershed Steward Handbook and a certificate of completion. The Texas Watershed Steward program offers four continuing education units in soil and water management for certified crop advisers, four units for professional engineers and certified planners, four credits for certified teachers and two credits for nutrient management specialists. A total of four professional development hours are available for professional geoscientists.
In addition, three general continuing education units are offered for Texas Department of Agriculture pesticide license holders, and four for certified landscape architects. Four continuing education credits are provided to certified floodplain managers and for each of the following Texas Commission on Environmental Quality occupational licensees: wastewater system operators, public water system operators, on-site sewage facility installers, and landscape irrigators.
“Participating in the Texas Watershed Steward program is a great way to get involved and make a difference in your watershed,” Silvers said.
The Texas Watershed Steward program is funded through a Clean Water Act nonpoint source grant from the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
For more information on the Texas Watershed Steward program go to http://tws.tamu.edu or contact Kuitu at 979-862-4457, mkuitu@tamu.edu or Silvers at 325-446-2620, gssilvers@ag.tamu.edu.
For information on the watershed protection plan for the Upper Llano River watershed, go to https://www.llanoriver.org/ or contact Broad at 806-834-1170, tyson.broad@ttu.edu.
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