Contact: Mike Hiller, 361-782-3312, mrhiller@ag.tamu.edu
Dr. Allen Berthold, 979-845-2028, taberthold@ag.tamu.edu
Michael Kuitu, 979-862-4457, mkuitu@tamu.edu
EDNA – A Texas Watershed Steward workshop on water quality related to the Lavaca River will be held from 1-5 p.m. Jan. 25 at the Jackson County Services Building, 411 N. Wells St., Edna.
The workshop is presented by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board in cooperation with the Texas Water Resources Institute.
“This workshop is designed to help watershed residents improve and protect their water resources by becoming involved in Lavaca River watershed protection and management activities,” said Michael Kuitu, AgriLife Extension program specialist and coordinator for the Texas Watershed Steward program, College Station.
The workshop is free and open to anyone interested in improving water quality in the region, Kuitu said. Participants are encouraged to preregister at the Texas Watershed Steward website at http://tws.tamu.edu.
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 workshop will include an overview of water quality and watershed management in Texas, but will primarily focus on area water quality, including current efforts to help improve and protect the Lavaca River,” said Mike Hiller, AgriLife Extension agent for Jackson County. “The workshop will address issues related to local water resources but will be applicable to all waters in the region.”
The Lavaca River is an important water resource, TWRI research scientist Dr. Allen Berthold said.
“The Lavaca is a treasured natural resource of the state of Texas for such activities as fishing and is essential wildlife habitat,” Berthold said.
He said the institute and AgriLife Extension encourage local residents and other stakeholders to attend the workshop to gain information about water resources, water quality improvement and watershed protection.
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, four for certified landscape architects and three for certified floodplain managers. Four continuing education credits are offered 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 opportunity to get involved and make a difference in your watershed,” Hiller 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 and to preregister, go to http://tws.tamu.edu or contact Kuitu at 979-862-4457, mkuitu@tamu.edu; or Hiller at 361-782-3312, mrhiller@ag.tamu.edu.
For information on the watershed protection efforts for the Lavaca River watershed, contact Berthold at 979-845-2028, taberthold@ag.tamu.edu.
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