A creek winds through tree-lined banks. The Aug. 16 Lone Star Healthy Streams program in Wallisville will cover water and soil health, as well as best management practices for grazing livestock and feral hogs.
The Aug. 16 Lone Star Healthy Streams program in Wallisville will cover water and soil health, as well as best management practices for grazing livestock and controlling feral hogs. (Michael Miller/Texas A&M AgriLife)

A free Lone Star Healthy Streams workshop on the Double Bayou watershed will be held Aug. 13 in Wallisville.

The event will be from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. at White’s Park Community Center/Chambers County Community Center, 222 White Memorial Park Road, No. 220. RSVP on the Chambers County Events page at https://tx.ag/LSHSChambersCounty.

The program is a joint effort of the Double Bayou Watershed Partnership, Houston Advanced Research Center, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute and the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board.

Two integrated pest management continuing education units are available for Texas Department of Agriculture pesticide applicator license holders.

Double Bayou watershed management main topic

The workshop will focus on the Double Bayou watershed, water and soil health, and best practices for managing grazing livestock and feral hogs proven to minimize bacterial contamination. Pasture weed management will also be discussed.

“The goal of the Lone Star Healthy Streams program is to protect Texas waterways from bacterial contamination originating from livestock, wildlife and invasive species that may pose a serious health risk to Texans,” said Leanne Wiley, AgriLife Extension program specialist and Lone Star Healthy Streams coordinator, Bryan-College Station. “The aim is to increase awareness of non-point source pollution, provide education materials to Texas producers and landowners, and encourage implementation.”

Watershed protection plan discussion

Ryan Bare, Ph.D., research scientist, Houston Advanced Research Center, will also update participants on the Double Bayou Watershed Protection Plan. The presentation will include a brief background on the project and the current water quality monitoring data.

Funding is provided through a Clean Water Act Section 319(h) nonpoint source grant administered by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

For more information on the workshop, contact Leanne Wiley at 979-321-5950 or [email protected]; Kirsten Vernin, senior research assistant, 281-364-6056 or [email protected]; or Megan Carter, AgriLife Extension agriculture and natural resources agent in Chambers County, at 409-374-2123 or [email protected].