AUSTIN — Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) Law Enforcement office locations have now reopened to the public. Appointments are no longer required, except at the Austin Headquarters. Offices will be open during regular business hours, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
AUSTIN— Texas Game Wardens closed the summer boating season with water safety checks and boating safety patrols on the lakes, rivers and bays in Texas over the extended Labor Day weekend. Between Friday and Monday, water safety checks were conducted on more than 3,800 vessels statewide. Additionally, 267 citations and 412 warnings were issued for various boating safety law violations.
AUSTIN – Labor Day weekend is approaching and Texans around the state are making plans to take advantage of extra time on the waterways. Compared to this time last year, incidents on the water are up 55 percent while boating injuries having increased 68 percent. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) is reminding everyone to be safe this holiday weekend by following basic boating safety precautions and public health guidelines while on the water.
AUSTIN – With the start of a new hunting season fast approaching, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) is reminding hunters and anglers that current year Texas hunting and fishing licenses (except the Year-from-Purchase All-Water Package) will expire at the end of August. New licenses for the 2020-21 season go on sale Aug. 15.
AUSTIN – La nueva temporada de cacería está llegando, y el Departamento de Parques y Vida Silvestre de Texas quiere recordarles a los cazadores y pescadores que sus licencias (con excepción del paquete de “Year-from-Purchase” para pesca en todas las aguas) expirarán al fin de agosto. Nuevas licencias para la temporada de 2020-2021 estarán a la venta el 15 de agosto.
AUSTIN— While conducting aerial surveys for desert bighorn sheep in West Texas on Saturday, Aug. 8, three Texas Parks and Wildlife Department employees died in a helicopter crash on TPWD’s Black Gap Wildlife Management Area in Brewster County.
The following items are compiled from recent Texas Parks and Wildlife law enforcement reports.
AUSTIN – Conservation groups are asking the tens of thousands of people who boat in Texas coastal waters every year to become part of the solution to conserve diminishing habitats. Habitat loss and degradation has been documented for years as a problem in coastal bays. The call for conservation comes as people look for a safe outdoor activity during the ongoing pandemic, when choosing to fish or boat in the bays is a popular option.
AUSTIN— Every year on July 31, World Ranger Day is an opportunity to take a moment to recognize the unwavering commitment towards park stewardship by the many park rangers at the 89 Texas State Parks that make up our state park system. Initially created by the International Ranger Federation, World Ranger Day celebrates the work park rangers do daily to protect the planet’s natural treasures and cultural heritage.
AUSTIN — Chad Jones has been selected as the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s new Law Enforcement Director. Col. Jones became a game warden in 2004 and has held duty stations in Brazos and Trinity Counties, has served as a Team Lead for the Forensic Accident and Reconstruction Team, a Lieutenant at the Game Warden Training Center in Hamilton County, Texas, a Captain in Uvalde and a Major in both Corpus Christi and in the Pineywoods region of East Texas.