Just as it does every year, the Watershed Protection Department came to present a summary of its Youth Education outreach program to the Environmental Commission. Susan Wall, who is the department’s conservation program coordinator, on Wednesday updated the commissioners on what she considered an impressive school year. The department reached out to 109 of the […]
Watershed Protection Department
The city’s Watershed Protection Department works to reduce the impact of floods, erosion and water pollution in the city. The department is mostly funded by the city’s drainage fee.
Posted inEnvironment
How zebra mussels will change Austin lakes (and maybe Barton Springs) forever
The invasive zebra mussel has been moving south for years, leaving destruction in its wake. Now, it’s in Lake Travis, and it will soon make its way downstream, changing the look, feel and maybe even the taste of Austin’s lakes forever. At first glance, the mussels don’t look very threatening. They’re about the size of […]
Posted inWater
City looks to bond to protect water, reduce flooding
The city needs to do a lot more to protect its water supply from contamination and its residents from flooding, officials from the Watershed Protection Department told members of the Environmental Commission Wednesday. They believe that a bond package that is currently being reviewed by a city commission offers the best opportunity for the city […]
Posted inWater
EPA drops objection to Dripping Springs’ permit
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has withdrawn its interim objection to Dripping Springs’ application to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to discharge 995,000 gallons of treated wastewater into a tributary of Onion Creek. Dripping Springs officials have always said that even with the permit they would initiate a beneficial reuse program for the wastewater […]
Posted inEnvironment
Environmental Commission calls for investigation into hidden junkyards
In the same way that it’s hard to pinpoint how many pieces of garbage it takes to make a heap, the Environmental Commission deliberated Wednesday night how many instances of localized dumping in the city would amount to a serious problem. Several residents from Ebony Acres in East Austin, off the northwest side of Givens […]
Posted inEnvironment
Environmental Commission holds off on water quality requirements (again)
Despite the Environmental Commission’s efforts to remove controversial amendments to the Watershed Protection Ordinance at previous meetings, the commission was unable to resolve an amendment relating to water quality control at its regular meeting May 3. Andrea Bates, the environmental program coordinator at the Watershed Protection Department, presented various proposed amendments to the Watershed Protection Ordinance, […]
Posted inCity Hall
Austin’s inaugural artist-in-residence takes up her post
Rehab El Sadek marries silly and sober. Take her outfit: a colorfully patterned turtleneck atop a stern dark skirt. Her straight, black hair in low pigtails. Glasses. And while her paintings and prints dot the walls throughout the home she rents in Round Rock, El Sadek’s pieces have hung in galleries in Europe and Africa. […]
Posted inLand Development Code
Environmental Commission gets chance with CodeNEXT updates, concerns
CodeNEXT is the talk of the town. So it’s no surprise the main topic of conversation at the Environmental Commission meeting Wednesday evening was no different. The commission heard recommendations from the Watershed Protection Department, but took no formal action on the suggestions presented. Erin Wood, principal planner with the Watershed Protection Department, said CodeNEXT […]
Posted inWater
Bill would stop Austin from protesting pollution
State Rep. Jason Isaac (R-Dripping Springs) has filed a bill that appears to threaten to punish the city of Austin for opposing Dripping Springs’ controversial wastewater discharge permit before the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The city of Austin has been working with Dripping Springs to reach a settlement on issues related to Dripping Springs’ […]
Posted inWater
Austin has proposal for Dripping Springs permit
The city of Austin has released a draft proposal for Dripping Springs’ controversial permit to discharge 995,000 gallons of treated wastewater into Onion Creek. The Austin and Dripping Springs city councils must both agree to the terms of the proposal. But there are several other landowners and agencies that may request that the Texas Commission […]
Posted inResources
City defends stance on Dripping Springs discharge permit
Chris Herrington, an engineer with the city’s Watershed Protection Department, hopes to dispel the notion that the city of Austin is an “800-pound gorilla” that intimidates surrounding municipalities into submitting to its environmental policy. At the Dec. 7 meeting of the Environmental Commission, Herrington and other Watershed Protection staff presented a brief on the city […]
Posted inEnvironment
Slow response to flood report frustrates some commissioners
The city does not have many options for supporting individuals who suffer loss or damages from flooding caused by a development upstream, based on an exchange at the Nov. 29 joint meeting of the Planning and the Zoning and Platting commissions. After a presentation on the Land Use Review Process by the Development Services Department […]