HOUSTON — Many of the 7,500 or so students who visit Sheldon Lake Environmental Learning Center each year see the solar power arrays and wind turbine generating clean electricity, but probably few of them know this site recently became the first Texas Parks and Wildlife Department building to get a prestigious Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified rating from the U.S. Green Building Council.
AUSTIN, Texas — By the slimmest of margins, Tyler Goetzman of Willis is Texas’ newest junior state record holder for largemouth bass.
The following are excerpts from recent Texas Parks and Wildlife Department law enforcement reports.
HOUSTON — Are black bears coming back to East Texas? How are exotic invasive species affecting native Texas plants and animals? Are roads and highways having an effect on amphibian and reptile populations? Find out the answers to these questions and be a part of the implementation of the Texas Wildlife Action Plan during the 2008 Texas Wildlife Diversity Conference at the Houston Zoo’s Brown Education Center Jan.17 through Jan. 19, 2008.
VICTORIA, Texas — Construction of the Victoria-Riverside Park Paddling Trail on the Guadalupe River is complete and the new trail access ramp will be dedicated on Wed., Jan. 23 at 10 a.m.
KYLE, Texas — Across Texas, a seismic shift in land ownership is transforming the landscape. Bigger ranches are giving way to ranchettes, resulting in loss of open range and fragmentation of wildlife habitat. One solution is landowners banding together for common benefits, which is the focus of the Texas Organization of Wildlife Management Associations (TOWMA) annual conference Feb. 1-2 in Kyle south of Austin.
AUSTIN, Texas — If you love the outdoors and are looking for a job where you can make a difference in conserving Texas’ natural and cultural resources, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department may have just the job you’re looking for.
AUSTIN, Texas — Dangerous. That’s the word fire officials and rangeland management specialists use to describe the combination of heavy grass growth and dry conditions that exist now over much of Texas. Big rains in 2007 produced a lot of grass and other vegetation, which now amounts to dry tinder in much of the state.
AUSTIN, Texas — For the fifth year, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will host two Flat Out Fishing seminars to help anglers start the new year with an edge. The first event, in Corpus Christi, kicks-off at 8 a.m., Sat., Feb. 2, at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. The event will be held at Bay Hall, Room 103, at TAMU-CC’s Ward Island campus. The second event will be in Lake Jackson at the Lake Jackson Civic Center Feb. 9.
EDITORS NOTE: In this issue of TPWD News, we forsake our usual format for the most part and provide a summary of the top news stories of 2007. Details about these topics can be found in the department’s online news archive. Please note that TPWD will not be distributing weekly news during the coming holidays. Weekly news distribution will resume on Jan. 14, 2008. Happy Holidays!