Registration deadline April 9
Contacts: Clare Entwistle, 210-277-0292 x205, clare.entwistile@ag.tamu.edu
Dr. Fouad Jaber, 512-213-7389, Fouad.Jaber@ag.tamu.edu
AUSTIN – The Texas Water Resources Institute Urban Riparian and Stream Restoration Program will host a workshop from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. April 11 in Austin for professionals interested in conducting stream restoration projects in that area.
The urban riparian stream education program is managed by the Texas Water Resources Institute, part of Texas A&M AgriLife Research, the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University.
The morning session will be at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality office, Building F, Room 2210, 12100 Park 35 Circle. The afternoon session will be outdoors along Walnut Creek, where attendees will learn stream surveying techniques.
The workshop is co-hosted locally by the city of Austin Watershed Protection Department, Hill Country Alliance and the AgriLife Extension office in Travis County.
Clare Entwistle, research associate at the institute’s San Antonio office, said attendees must register by April 9.
Individual registration is $100 and can be paid online at https://bit.ly/2I8cqAg. Cost includes all training materials, lunch and a certificate of completion. Attendees are encouraged to register early as the workshop is limited to 40 people.
“Riparian and stream degradation is a major threat to water quality, in-stream habitat, terrestrial wildlife, aquatic species and overall stream health,” said Dr. Fouad Jaber, AgriLife Extension program specialist for the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Dallas.
“Proper management, protection and restoration of these riparian areas will improve water quality, lower in-stream temperatures, improve aquatic habitat and ultimately improve macrobenthos and fish community integrity,” he said.
Jaber said the goal of the workshop is for participants to better understand urban stream functions and the impacts of development on urban streams.
“It will show attendees how to evaluate healthy versus degraded stream systems, assess and classify a stream using the Bank Erosion Hazard Index and understand differences between natural and traditional restoration techniques,” he said.
Entwistle said the institute is able to offer the workshop at a reduced cost thanks to program funding provided through a Clean Water Act nonpoint source grant from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Participants also receive appropriate continuing education unit certificates at the conclusion of the training.
“The workshop offers many types of continuing education units and more credits are in the process of being added,” Entwistle said.
Foresters and professional loggers can receive six hours from the Society of American Foresters. It offers one unit from the Texas Water Resources Institute, seven hours for Certified Crop Advisors, and six hours for Texas Nutrient Management Planning specialists. The program may also be used for continuing education units for professional engineers.
Entwistle said attendees should check with their local Master Naturalist and Master Gardener chapters to see if they offer continuing education units for the training.
For more information, contact Entwistle at 210-277-2092 ext. 205 or clare.entwistle@ag.tamu.edu, or visit http://texasriparian.org or Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/TexasRiparianAssociation.
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