Hill Country Alliance

THE MISSION OF THE HILL COUNTRY ALLIANCE IS TO BRING TOGETHER A DIVERSE COALITION OF PARTNERS TO PRESERVE THE OPEN SPACES, STARRY NIGHT SKIES, CLEAN AND ABUNDANT WATERS, AND UNIQUE CHARACTER OF THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY.

COMMUNITY PROGRAM: HCA'S COMMUNITY PROGRAM FOCUSES ON SUPPORTING THE CITIES, COUNTIES, AND LOCALLY ORGANIZED VOLUNTEER GROUPS OF THE HILL COUNTRY TO BUILD A RESILIENT FUTURE FOR THEIR COMMUNITIES. HCA LEADS THE TEXANS FOR RESPONSIBLE AGGREGATE MINING (TRAM) IN FINDING WAYS TO MINIMIZE THE IMPACT OF AGGREGATE OPERATIONS ON OUR COMMUNITY RESOURCES. WE SUPPORT THE COMAL COUNTY CONSERVATION ALLIANCE IN RAISING AWARENESS FOR THE NEED FOR LAND CONSERVATION IN COMAL COUNTY. WE ALSO WORK TO BRING COMMUNITY LEADERS TOGETHER FOR SHARED LEARNING ABOUT FUNDING FOR CONSERVATION, POLICY TOOLS, AND TO CREATE A SHARED NARRATIVE AROUND THE GROWTH OUR REGION IS SEEING.

LAND PROGRAM: HCA WORKS TO ADVANCE PERMANENT LAND PROTECTION AS WELL AS STEWARDSHIP PRACTICES WITH PRIVATE LANDOWNERS. WE PARTNER WITH TEXAS PARKS AND WILDLIFE DEPARTMENT TO CONTROL INVASIVE SPECIES IN FREDERICKSBURG AND THE PEDERNALES BASIN. WE CONVENED RIPARIAN GATHERINGS, CREATED HANDS-ON LEARNING EXPERIENCES, AND ENGAGED MORE THAN 1,000 LANDOWNERS THROUGH OUR OUTREACH EFFORTS. WE PROVIDE CRITICAL SUPPRT TO THE HEADWATERS ALLIANCE, A GROUP OF LANDOWNERS INTERESTED IN PROTECTING THE SPRINGFLOW THAT SUSTAINS OUR HILL COUNTRY RIVERS. HCA ACTIVELY SEEKS TO BUILD AND SUPPORT PLACE-BASED CONSERVATION INITIATIVES ACROSS THE REGION. WATER PROGRAM: WATER CONTINUES TO BE CENTRAL TO ALL WE DO, AS THE FUTURE OF OUR REGION DEPENDS ON THE CONTINUED FLOW OF OUR SPRINGS AND RIVERS. WE WORKED WITH THE NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION TO RELEASE THE ONE WATER GUIDEBOOK FOR THE HILL COUNTRY, AND SUPPORTED SEVERAL COMMUNITIES IN APPLYING FOR NEW FUNDING FOR WATER INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS.IN ADDITION, WE WORKED WITH PARTNERS TO ADDRESS THE IMPACT OF TREATED WASTEWATER IN OUR PRISTINE STREAMS, AND LED THE WAY FOR A RESEARCH PROJECT INVESTIGATING THE IMPACT OF WATER CHALLENGES - FROM FLOODING TO DROUGHT, CONTAMINATION, ACCESS, AND RELIABILITY-ON VARIOUS DEMOGRAPHIC POPULATIONS ACROSS THE REGION. NIGHT SKIES: THE NIGHT SKIES PROGRAM SEEKS TO SEED LOCALLY-LED NIGHT SKY PRESERVATION EFFORT ALL ACROSS THE REGION. WE HIRED OUR FIRST FULL-TIME NIGHT SKY MANAGER IN 2021, AND QUICKLY SAW THE GROWTH IN MOMENTUM FOR GREATER AWARENESS OF THE IMPACT OF OUTDOOR LIGHT POLLUTION.

HCA CONTINUES TO SERVE AS THE BACKBONE ORGANIZATION FOR THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY CONSERVATION NETWORK, FURTHERING OUR COLLABORATIVE IMPACT APPROACH TO CONSERVATION OF THE LAND, WATER, COMMUNITIES, AND NATURAL RESOURCES OF THE HILL COUNTRY. THE NETWORK COMPLETED ITS FIRST MAJOR REPORT, THE STATE OF THE HILL COUNTRY, TO RAISE AWARENESS OF THE NEED FOR CONSERVATION ACTION IN OUR REGION. NETWORK PARTNERS, AGAIN WITH HCA AT THE LEAD, APPLIED FOR - AND RECEIVED- A SENTINEL LANDSCAPE DESIGNATION FOR THE AREA AROUND JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO CAMP BULLIS. THIS RECOGNITION WILL GARNER SIGNIFICANT NEW FUNDING FOR LAND, WATER, AND NIGHT SKY CONSERVATION IN THE TARGET GEOGRAPHY.

HCA ACCOMPLISHES MUCH OF OUR WORK THROUGH OUR OUTREACH EFFORTS. WE CONTINUE TO PRODUCE OUR "NEIGHBOR TO NEIGHBOR" NEWSLETTERS AND PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENTS, WHICH REACH MORE THAN 9,000 SUBSCRIBERS. WE CREATE TIMELY WEB RESOURCES, RADIO AND VIDEO PROGRAMS, ISSUE PAPERS AND SPECIAL EVENTS. EVEN IN PANDEMIC TIMES, WE HAVE SUCCESSFULLY CONVENED ONLINE GATHERINGS THAT INSPIRE, INFORM, AND EMPOWER OUR PARTNERS ACROSS THE REGION TO PLAN FOR THE RESILIENCE OF OUR LANDS, WATERS, NIGHT SKIES AND COMMUNITIES.