Government Canyon SNA Celebrates City Partnership This Sunday

Media Contact: Chris Holm, 210-688-9055, ext. 2008

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SAN ANTONIO – On Sunday, March 6, all day-use entry into Government Canyon State Natural Area will be free to the public to celebrate their 16-year partnership with the Edwards Aquifer Protection Program (EAPP) and to say “thank you” to the citizens of San Antonio.

“We are very proud of the partnerships that created, and are still creating, this special place,” says Government Canyon SNA Superintendent Chris Holm. “We would like to say ‘thank you’ to the citizens of this great city for their unwavering support over the years. It’s something that everyone should be proud of and is certainly worth celebrating.”

The free entrance day, which also coincides with the kick-off of the National Groundwater Association’s National Groundwater Awareness Week, will showcase the work that has been done to protect the lands over the Edward’s Aquifer Recharge Zone.

Representatives from the EAPP will also be on hand to promote awareness of the program and to answer any questions. The public is encouraged to come out to learn about this partnership and spend the day experiencing all that their state natural area has to offer.

Through voter-approved bond funding, the unique partnership between the city and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department protects San Antonio’s primary water source, while helping the state natural area grow in size.

“Since 2000, the City of San Antonio voters have repeatedly approved aquifer protection funding, via a one-eighth cent sales tax, to the tune of $315 million,” says Holm. “Over the past decade and a half, portions of this funding was used to protect lands that are now part of Government Canyon SNA.”

With a recent acquisition of 230 acres, Government Canyon SNA is now at roughly 12,249 acres, most of which was acquired under funding partnerships with the city, with several of these acquisitions including other partners, such as the Edwards Aquifer Authority, San Antonio Water System, the Trust for Public Lands, Bexar County and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.

About Texas State Parks:

The Texas State Parks System’s mission balances outdoor recreation and sustainable use of resources with conservation and management of natural and cultural resources. The department operates 95 Texas state parks, natural areas and historic sites.

About the Edward’s Aquifer Protection Program:

The purpose of the City of San Antonio’s aquifer protection program is to protect the quality and quantity of water recharging into the Edwards Aquifer through the protection of land over the sensitive Recharge and Contributing Zones of the aquifer.