CGMF Grant to Initiate The Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority/The Aransas Project Agreement

AUSTIN — The Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority (GBRA) and The Aransas Project (TAP) undertook the first step in the implementation of The Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority/The Aransas Project Agreement (GBRA/TAP Agreement), announcing the receipt of a grant from the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation (www.CGMF.org).

The grant is to develop a strategy and action plan to advance implementation of the GBRA/TAP Agreement toward a shared vision for future habitat and water for Guadalupe River System and San Antonio Bay.

Developed in 2016, the GBRA/TAP agreement was reached after years of litigation over freshwater inflows for San Antonio Bay and the long-term success of the only remaining flock of wild whooping cranes in the world.

The agreement sets up a process by which GBRA and TAP will jointly investigate issues associated with the future of water usage and availability on the Guadalupe and San Antonio River systems and the freshwater needs of the whooping cranes. The work under the agreement will consider both habitat issues for the whooping cranes as well as long-term water supply and inflow issues.

Under this planning grant, GBRA and TAP are designing a process to engage key stakeholders throughout the Guadalupe River Watershed and neighboring San Antonio and Aransas Bays to inform the development of the strategy and plan to support the implementation of the Agreement. This research will begin in June and will continue into the fall.

The intent of GBRA and TAP is to create a study and evaluation process that will ultimately propose distinct courses of action to ensure whooping crane habitat and long-term water availability for both humans and nature. 

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About The Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority

The Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority was established by the Texas Legislature in 1933 as a water conservation and reclamation district. GBRA provides stewardship for the water resources in its 10-county statutory district, which begins near the headwaters of the Guadalupe and Blanco rivers, ends at San Antonio Bay, and includes Kendall, Comal, Hays, Caldwell, Guadalupe, Gonzales, DeWitt, Victoria, Calhoun, and Refugio counties. GBRA provides services that include hydroelectric generation; water and wastewater treatment; municipal, industrial, and agricultural raw water supply; and recreational operations.

About The Aransas Project

The Aransas Project was founded by a diverse group of organizations who believe that the whooping cranes, the Texas coast and the freshwater of the Guadalupe River Basin are essential to our way of life. TAP is committed to ensuring Guadalupe River flows from the Hill Country to the coast and for the protection of San Antonio and Aransas Bays and the endangered whooping crane. TAP’s membership includes governmental entities such as Aransas County, City of Rockport and Town of Fulton and non-governmental organizations such as the International Crane Foundation, American Bird Conservancy, Audubon Texas, Matagorda Bay Foundation, Houston, Coastal Bend and Travis Audubon Societies, Aransas Bird and Nature Club, Aransas County Guides Association, and several Rockport-area businesses.

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