VICTORIA – The Texas Water Resources Institute, or TWRI, is hosting a meeting April 5 in Victoria for anyone interested in becoming involved in a partnership to improve and protect water quality in the Garcitas and Arenosa Creek watersheds.
Arenosa Creek. (Texas Water Resources Institute photo)
The meeting, free and open to the public, will be at 1 p.m. at the Victoria County 4-H Activity Center, 259 Bachelor Drive.
TWRI is part of Texas A&M AgriLife Research, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University.
Dr. Allen Berthold, TWRI senior research scientist, College Station, said the meeting is the fourth in a series with local stakeholders to address water quality impairments in Arenosa and Garcitas creeks.
“Bacteria concentration in Arenosa Creek currently exceeds the state water quality standard for recreation,” he said.
Berthold said through a project it manages, TWRI will be working with local landowners, agricultural producers, residents and other stakeholders to develop a strategic plan to reduce bacteria and other pollutants in local waterways.
“At the meeting, we will work with local stakeholders to identify effective and voluntary management measures for reducing bacteria loads in Arenosa Creek,” he said.
Michael Schramm, TWRI research associate, College Station, said getting local involvement from interested individuals and developing a voluntary plan of action is the first step to improving and protecting water quality.
For more information, visit the project website at http://matagordabasin.tamu.edu or contact Schramm at michael.schramm@ag.tamu.edu.
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Contacts: Allen Berthold, 979-845-2028, taberthold@ag.tamu.edu
Michael Schramm, 979-458-9191, michael.schramm@ag.tamu.edu
