Conservation Successes

Slaughter Creek Riparian Restoration

Volunteer Stewards' Tree Planting Day

Austin, TX (February 5, 2005) - Volunteer Stewards participated in planting native trees and grasses to restore a 2-acre riparian area along Slaughter Creek, one of six watershed units managed by the City of Austin's Water Quality Protection Lands Program. The volunteers at this event are part of a larger stewardship project to assist the city with land management and public access activities on 7500 acres which were acquired for their aquifer recharge. The cracked limestone creek bottoms, along with caves and sinkholes, allow water to recharge the underground aquifer.

The National Park Service Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program (RTCA) has been assisting the Hill Country Foundation (HCF) in developing the stewardship program. RTCA helped HCF obtain a grant from the NPS Challenge Cost Share Program. The grant will fund restoration activities in three watersheds and a curriculum and training for tour guides and land stewards. Treefolks, another valuable partner, expanded its tree nursery to begin growing native seeds, collected from the water quality lands, for future riparian restoration. For more information, please contact Kathryn Nichols, Community Planner, at kathryn_nichols@nps.gov or 512-916-5161.