Passport to Texas

This is Passport to Texas

Continued drought and a growing population are taking their toll on the Colorado River. This important source of water for humans and wildlife stretches 600 miles from west Texas to the Gulf of Mexico.

11— The Colorado River is the lifeblood of the state of Texas because it runs right down the center [of the state]. It supports every single kind of Texan, [from] old cowboys and little fishes to everybody in-between.

In the July issue of TPW magazine, writer, Jenna Craig, provides an overview of the challenges regulatory agencies face regarding distribution of the resource among its users. She said, in the water game, no one emerges a winner.

18— We simply do not have enough water to meet everybody’s needs—and that is nobody’s fault. There is no way [so far] that anyone has [devised] a way to distribute the water to meet everyone’s needs that won’t be upsetting to somebody.

What we need is rain, and a lot of it, falling in recharge and runoff areas. Until then, personal responsibility must be part of the overall management strategy.

15—Conserve water. Think about what you’re doing. Think about the kind of plants you have in your yard [for example], and how often you water. Is watering your yard the most important thing you do with that resource? That’s a choice we make. [Remember: what you do] doesn’t just affect you and your yard. It affects everybody.

Find Jenna Craig’s article—Upstream, Downstream—in the July issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.