Texas Waters Specialist
Through this program, we want to develop a corps of well-informed volunteer specialists who provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of aquatic resources and aquatic habitats within their communities for the state of Texas. Questions? Please direct them to Melissa Felty (Alderson), Conservation Education Manager, melissa.alderson@tpwd.texas.gov
Program Requirements
Accumulate at least 8 hours of Advanced Training utilizing the Texas Waters curriculum:
- Attend Texas Waters live webinars. If you missed any webinars, you can earn AT by forming a study group and watch the recorded webinars (below) with discussion.
- Read Texas Waters curriculum. Form a study group and use the "Questions to Consider" or TW Chapter quizzes (below) to guide your study and discussion.
- Attend Texas Waters Day event or aquatic/watershed based sessions and field trips at the Texas Master Naturalist Annual meeting.
- Other approved aquatic or watershed learning activities or trainings (Limit-4 hours)
Texas Waters Specialist and Webinar Flyer 2021
During times of COVID-19, modifications to obtaining TWS certification AT hours (not a requirement but options for AT as social distancing continues):
- previously recorded webinars can be viewed independently. (TMN: Group discussion still required)
- Texas Waters curriculum chapter quizzes. To receive credit, a score of 100% is required; the quizzes can be taken more than once. Results are saved, therefore, no need to send an email to Melissa Felty (Alderson) of completion. For credit, remember to properly log your AT hours (up to 1 hour of TWS AT eligible per chapter). (TMN: per TMN policy-quizzes are not approved for your Chapter AT but will count toward TWS certification)
- Texas Water curriculum, Download PDF or request a hard copy by sending your name and address to Melissa.Alderson@tpwd.texas.gov
- Chapter One: Texas Aquatic Habitats and the Species They Support
- Chapter Two: The Characteristics, Components and Value of Healthy Watershed Ecosystems
- Chapter Three: The Watershed’s Role as a Natural System
- Chapter Four: Ecosystem Services
- Chapter Five: The Ecological Significance of Natural Flow Regimes
- Chapter Six: The Role and Function of Wetlands and Estuarine Systems
- Chapter Seven: Natural Instruments of Watershed Change
- Chapter Eight: Human Caused Instruments of Watershed Change
- Chapter Nine: Texas Water Law and Planning
Texas Waters Specialist - Volunteer Registration and Reporting Guide
Texas Master Naturalists should enter their Advanced Training hours under the "AT:TX Waters Certification Training" opportunity for AT credit. The hours required to obtain certification and for community service are not on top of existing chapter requirements; instead, can be counted toward your annual chapter requirements (except for Chapter quizzes).
Annual Renewal Requirements
Participate in at least 10 hours of volunteer services in the area of water and watersheds. Projects should be pre-approved. Some examples can be found here.
2021 Texas Waters Webinars
- Thursday, January 21 @ 6:30-7:30 PM CT - From Micro to Macro: Shark and Fish Larvae Impacted by Microplastics, with Elise Pullen, Scientific Illustrator and TPWD VISTA & Jenna M Karr, Graduate Researcher at Center of Marine Debris Research at Hawaii Pacific University Register
- Thursday, February 18 @ 6:30-7:30 PM CT - Monofilament Recovery and Recycling Program (MRRP) & Nurdle Patrol, with John O'Connell, Coordinator of MRRP at Texas Sea Grant.Register
- Tuesday, March 9 @ 6:30-7:30 PM CT - Harmful Algae Blooms, with Brent Bellinger, Senior Environmental Scientist at City of Austin Watershed Protection. Register
- Tuesday, April 13 @ 6:30-7:30 PM CT - Watershed Protection Programs, with Blake Alldredge, at Upper Trinity Regional Water District. Register
- Wednesday, May 19 @ 6:30-7:30 PM CT - Native American Cultural Connection to Water, with Bryant Celestine, Historic Preservation Officer at Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas. Register
- Tuesday, June 15 @ 6:30-7:30 PM CT - Regenerative Land Management for Healthy Watersheds, with Philip Boyd, Director of Science and Communications, and Casey Wade, Vice President of Ranching Operations, at Dixon Water Foundation. Register
- Wednesday, July 14 @ 6:30-7:30 PM CT - Aquatic Vegetation Management, with Brittany Chesser, Aquatic Vegetation Management Program Specialist at Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. Register
- Wednesday, August 18 @ 6:30-7:30 PM CT - One Water and Water Conservation, Kimberly Horndeski, Coastal Fisheries Natural Resource Specialist, TPWD. Register
Past Webinars
- February 27, 2017 “The characteristics, components and value of healthy Watershed Ecosystems", with Megan Bean, TPWD, View Recorded Webinar, Megan's PowerPoint
- April 18, 2017 "The Ecological Significance of Natural Flow Regimes", with Kevin Mayes, TPWD. View Recorded Webinar, Kevin's PowerPoint
- June 22, 2017 "Instruments of Watershed Change", with Nikki Dictson, Extension Program Specialist with the Texas Water Resources Institute. View Recorded Webinar, Nikki's PowerPoint
- August 22, 2017 "Texas Water Law and Planning", with Cindy Loeffler, Chief, Water Resources Branch, TPWD. View Recorded Webinar, Cindy's Presentation
- December 19, 2017 "Aquatic Invasive Species" with Monica McGarrity, TPWD, View Recorded Webinar, Monica's PowerPoint
- February 15, 2018 "Urban Stream/Bayou Management/Challenges" with Mateo Scoggins, City of Austin Watershed Protection, View Recorded Webinar, Mateo's PowerPoint
- February 27, 2018 "Groundwater/Surface Water and Freshwater Inflow" with Andy Sansom, The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment, Recorded Webinar, Andy's PowerPoint
- April 10, 2018 "Guadalupe Bass/Small Mouth Bass Introduction/Removal" (Chapter 1) with Gordon Linam, TPWD, Recorded Webinar, Gordon's Presentation
- May 29, 2018 "Groundwater and Surface Water Rights" (Chapter 9) with Robert Mace, PhD,
The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment Associate Director, and Chief Water Policy Officer, Recorded Webinar, Robert's PowerPoint - June 26, 2018 "Texas Water Entities" (Chapter 9) with Cindy Loeffler, TPWD, Recorded Webinar, Cindy's PowerPoint
- August 7, 2018 "Coastal Ecology and Issues" (Chapters 1, 2, 6, 7, 8) with Holly Grand, TPWD, Recorded Webinar, Holly's PowerPoint
- August 28, 2018 "Our Changing Climate and the Impact on Texas' Fish, Wildlife, and Habitats (Texas Waters Chapter 8)" with Katharine Hayhoe, PhD, Texas Tech University Climate Scientist, Recorded Webinar (re-recorded by Dr. Hayhoe), resources provided by Katharine: NOAA's Climate at a Glance; Fourth US National Climate Assessment; Third US National Climate Assessment; Skeptical Science; PBS Digital Series, Global Weirding; Katharine's website
- January 16, 2019 - "ABCs of Apple Snails and eDNA" with Romi Burks, Biology Professor, Southwestern University Recorded Webinar, Romi's PowerPoint
- February 26, 2019 - "Recovering America's Wildlife Act (H.R. 4647)" with Kelly Simon, Urban Wildlife Biologist, TPWD Recorded Webinar, Kelly's PowerPoint
- March 19, 2019 - "Senate Bill 2: Instream Flow Study on the San Antonio River" with Gordon Linam, Stream Ecologist, TPWD Recorded Webinar, Gordon's PowerPoint
- April 23, 2019 - "The Reilly Elementary School Stormwater Retrofit: Water as a Resource and Education Tool" with Staryn Wagner, Environmental Scientist, City of Austin Watershed Protection Department & Amy Grossman, Landscape Architect Associate, Austin Parks and Recreation Department Recorded Webinar, Staryn and Amy's PowerPoint, Passive Rainwater Harvesting System Information
- May 21, 2019 – "Biological Monitoring Using Macroinvertebrates as Bioindicators of Water Quality in a Stream Ecosystem" with Archis Grubh, Aquatic Biologist, TPWD Recorded Webinar (audio only), Archis's PowerPoint, Archis's Management Project Video Clip
- Aquatic Science Education Apps
- June 18, 2019 - "Freshwater Mussels: Assessing the Status and Distribution of Unionids within the Tributaries of East Austin" with Liz Johnston, Environmental Program Coordinator, City of Austin Watershed Protection Department Recorded Webinar, Liz's PowerPoint
- July 16, 2019 - "The Importance of Playas in Texas High Plaines" with Don Kahl, Migratory Game Bird Specialist, TPWD Recorded Webinar, Don's PowerPoint
- August 20, 2019 - "Devils River: A multi-disciplinary approach to saving one of the last great wild rivers in Texas" with Sarah Robertson, Aquatic Biologist, River Studies Program, TPWD Recorded Webinar, Sarah's PowerPoint
- January 14, 2020 - "One Water: Managing Water Resources to Sustain Healthy Aquatic Ecosystems" with Cindy Loeffler, P.E., Water Resources Branch Chief, TPWD Recorded Webinar, Cindy's PowerPoint
- February 12, 2020 - "New Tools for Environmental Flow Information" with Kevin Mayes, Natural Resources Specialist, TPWD; Instream Flow Council-Resources (Scroll down to Texas) link to Environmental Tools, Recorded Webinar, Kevin's PowerPoint
- March 18, 2020 - "CoCoRaHs" with Bill Runyon CoCoRaHs-Texas State Coordinator, Retired, National Weather Service CoCoRaHS newsletter (Scroll down to Texas) The Crowd and the Cloud video (Click on CoCoRaHS to the left) Recorded Webinar, Bill's PowerPoint.
- April 7, 2020 - "Groundwater Conservation Districts" with Natalie Ballew, Manager, Texas Water Development Board TWDB webpage, Recorded Webinar, Natalie's PowerPoint
- May 19, 2020 - "Estuaries to Edwards: Aquatic Species Research with the Texas Comptroller's Natural Resources Program" with Chelsea Jones, Senior Research Analyst, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts CPA Natural Resources Program webpage Recorded Webinar Chelsea's PowerPoint
- June 17, 2020 - "Urban Water Cycle and City of Waco Water Drop Tour" with
Nora Schell, Lake Waco Wetlands Coordinator, City of Waco-Water Utilities & Melissa L. Mullins, Environmental Education Specialist, Baylor University-Center for Reservoir and Aquatic Systems Research Recorded Webinar, Nora Schell's PowerPoint
- July 14, 2020 - "Salt Bayou Watershed Restoration: Upper Coast Wetland Ecosystem Project" with Mike Rezsutek, Project Leader, TPWD Recorded Webinar, Mike's PowerPoint, Salt Bayou Watershed Restoration Plan
- August 13, 2020 - "River Restoration Guidelines" with Ryan McGillicuddy, Conservation Biologist, TPWD & Michelle Bertelsen, Ecologist and Land Steward, Ecosystem Design Group & John Hart Asher, MLA, Senior Environmental Designer, Ecosystem Design Group, Hill Country Restoration Design Guidelines, Recorded Webinar