LOCKHART – The Plum Creek Watershed Partnership will hold its quarterly meeting from 6:30 -9 p.m. Feb. 9 at the Lockhart State Park Recreation Hall.
The park is located at 4179 State Park Road and Farm-to-Market Road 20, west of U.S. Highway 183 in Lockhart.
The meeting is free and open to the public. Sign-in begins at 6 p.m., with presentations to start at 6:30 p.m.
“The partnership is composed of area stakeholders who are leading efforts to work with citizens and landowners to implement voluntary strategies to protect and improve water resources in Caldwell and Hays counties,” said Nikki Dictson, Texas AgriLife Extension Service program specialist in College Station and Plum Creek watershed coordinator.
Presenters will include experts from AgriLife Extension, the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board, Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority, partnership steering committee, Texas Stream Team and Caldwell-Travis Soil and Water Conservation District.
A Plum Creek Watershed Partnership committee meeting will be held Feb. 9 at Lockhart State Park Recreation Hall to include discussion of stakeholder feedback and comments on the progress and implementation of Plum Creek watershed efforts. (Texas AgriLife Extension Service photo)
Agenda items include an update and discussion of public comment and approval of the Plum Creek Watershed Protection Plan Update; updates on the 4b status for the watershed, and new Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority implementation grant and watershed coordinator position; Texas Stream Team update; and status reports on the implementation of agricultural best management practices and the Plum Creek Feral Hog Education Program.
The draft watershed protection plan details implementation and educational efforts to reduce pollution. It was developed by stakeholders and drafted by AgriLife Extension, and is now complete and available for review and comment, Dictson said. She said the purpose of the public comment period and discussion is to allow watershed partnership members to provide comments on the report and discuss the progress of the efforts to reduce pollution with those in attendance.
“Stakeholder feedback and comments on the progress and implementation efforts of the watershed protection plan are critical to ensure we are capturing all of the implementation occurring in the watershed,” she said. “So is incorporating any new potential avenues of programs or funding into the update report.”
The meeting will provide a brief overview of any comments received by the time of the meeting and any new or revised information since the last meeting.
“The time between now and the February meeting will allow folks to read through the watershed protection plan and formulate any comments or questions,” Dictson said.
Anyone wanting a copy of the update or who has comments on the watershed protection plan can email Dictson at n-dictson@tamu.edu, mail them to 2474 TAMU, 355A Heep Center, College Station, Texas 77843-2474 or bring them to the Feb. 9 meeting. The public comment period will close on Feb. 17, and all comments, edits and additional information will be incorporated into the final report.
For more information on the partnership, go to http://plumcreek.tamu.edu/. Funding for the development and support of the Plum Creek Watershed Protection Plan is through a Clean Water Act grant provided by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
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