Commissioners approve water quality monitoring agreement

HAYS COUNTY  —  The Hays County Commissioners Court recently approved an interlocal agreement that will be directed toward protecting the county’s invaluable natural resources.

At its Feb. 27 meeting, the commissioners unanimously approved the county judge to execute an interlocal agreement among Hays County, the city of Woodcreek, the city of Wimberley, The Watershed Association and The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment for the implementation of the Blanco Cypress Watershed Protection Plan (BCWPP).

According to agenda documents, the parties involved agree to establish a three-year pilot program to fund the continued Clean Rivers Program (CRP) water quality monitoring of Cypress Creek and the Blanco River upstream and downstream of the Wimberley Valley by The Meadows Center, a Watershed Coordinator position for continued implementation of the BCWPP and special studies and planning initiatives to be identified by the Executive Committee and Management Team.

In 2006, the Cypress Creek Project (CCP) was established to restore and protect the water quality in Cypress Creek — a major tributary of the Blanco River in the Guadalupe River Basin of Texas. Since the establishment of the project, more than $4 million has been dedicated to the development and implementation of the Cypress Creek Water Protection Plan.

Initially, the plan was being funded through grants from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), but that has ended, thus creating a need for the interlocal agreement.

“Previously, the Cypress Creek Water Protection Plan had been funded through grants from the EPA and it’s done a great job. It was one of the first, I think, of its kind that actually was preemptive to a waterway that was actually in peril,” said Hays County Commissioner Lon Shell. “Eventually, those grant funds start to go away from the EPA and the locals are asked to take them on. We have come up with an idea of getting together in the area and also expand it to the Blanco River as well to monitor water quality there.”

David Baker, founder and executive director of The Watershed Association, said that this agreement is a way to collaborate with multiple entities in the area.

“We have seen the impacts with this last year of the shortages of rain and overpumping. This plan is essentially the community owning this. We have had this outside funding that has helped us to get through this past decade, but now, we are at the place where we have to really all put skin in the game,” Baker said.

Shell expressed his appreciation for the work that The Watershed Association and The Meadows Center, located in San Marcos, have done over the years: “We have a long-standing relationship with both of those entities. They have been great partners. It allows us to leverage our dollars with our own talent here at home and there is a lot of talent here in Hays County on this issue.”

Commissioner Debbie Ingalsbe echoed similar sentiments, “I just appreciate the work that you all are doing. But I also appreciate the work that this court has done in preserving thousands of acres of land from development and continue to work with property owners that want to preserve their land conservation easements.”

Also at the meeting, the Hays County Commissioners Court unanimously approved the establishment of one new Watershed Coordinator position within the Hays County Parks Department, as a component of the interlocal agreement, effective April 1, 2024.

The position will initially be funded with American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds; the funding is for a two-year period and was identified during the annual budget process. The total request in funding is $43,225, according to agenda documents.

The Watershed Coordinator will serve as the coordinator of Watershed Protection Plan initiatives and act as a facilitator of the plan and related community activities to restore water quality and quantity in Cypress Creek and the Blanco River Basin. Responsibilities include: data collection and water quality monitoring, implementation of best management practices and protection of surface water and groundwater to address nonpoint source pollution from agriculture and urban sources, adequate spring and stream flows and outreach and education.

The Hays County Commissioners Court will meet next at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, March 12.