Passport to Texas

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

Dr. Larry McKinney, Director of Coastal Fisheries, retired from Parks and Wildlife in late May after 24 years of service. Before he left, I asked him to recount a proud moment with the agency.

Well, helping move the agency from what you would typically call the old “Hook & Bullet” agency that only dealt with deer and bass and sea trout, to something that looks more at ecosystems—the whole picture. But, I think we’re on the right road to really managing resources on a level that can be effective in today’s world.

There’s still work to be done.

The 800-pound gorilla in the room is the fact that the population is going to double. In another thirty years we going to have a lot more Texans out here—twice as many of us as there are now. We’ve already used up about half of our natural resources, so we can’t continue to use those resources as we did to get to this level. As we double this population, we’re going to have to look at ways to sustain these resources, or we won’t have a natural heritage like we have now. The Texas we know won’t exist in another twenty years if we don’t take care of it.

McKinney says Parks and Wildlife’s role in sustaining resources for the future is an important one.

In fact, the agency is the only one that can do it. And that is to be an advocate for fish and wildlife in all of these decisions. The primary one that we’ve been focused on for many years is water. We have to be there in the background saying, ‘okay, how are we going to make sure that we protect fish and wildlife. How are we going to make sure that the ecosystem on which we all depend and in which we all live is healthy and productive.’

That’s our show… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

It’s estimated that more than half of the dog owners in America take their furry friends with them on vacation… Dogs need vacations, too. But if you do decide to bring your pet to a state park, you’ll need to pack more than just their favorite treats and tennis ball.

All pets need to be on a leash when they stay in the park…and the leash cannot exceed six foot in length. They need to make sure that they have a collar on them for identification, in case they get loose and also their rabies tags that are current.

Wes Masur is the Director of State Park Law Enforcement at Texas Parks and Wildlife. Another thing to remember is Texas summers can be brutal on any animal with a fur coat…

Just make sure that they can get in a cool place, when it gets really hot those animals need abundance of water as well.

As tempting as it is, your dog is not allowed to go swimming in any state park pool…

Everybody has to control their animals, we want everyone to have a good time…

To learn more about bringing your pet into a state park, log onto the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

That’s our show for today…thank you for joining us…Joel Block engineers our program. For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Sport Fish & Wildlife Restoration Program

This month the Texas Parks and Wildlife television series airs segments from the documentary Texas: The State of Springs. Series Producer, Don Cash.

One of the things that’s pointed out in the documentary is that water conservation in Texas is going to have to happen on private lands. We’re not going to get more rain; we’ve got to deal with the water supply that we receive, and that starts on the land. One of the landowners that we feature is David Bamberger. He and his wife Margaret have a ranch in Blanco County. They’ve had to remove a lot of cedar from it, but as David points out, removing the cedar is not the end of the problem.

Without a grass system that has roots down into the earth when that rain falls, it washes off. But if it falls on the grass, you’ve got miles of root systems and that water can now penetrate down in.

Also in July, we’ll head to the Panhandle where we look at water speculators who are looking at building pipelines from the Panhandle—south—to sell what they call surplus water.

There isn’t actually any surplus water in this area. All the water that’s here is going to be needed eventually.

So, there’s a lot of information in July about the state of springs in Texas, and what we can do to help preserve them for the future.

Go to passporttotexas.org and find a link to PBS stations that air the series.

That’s our show… with support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

TP&W TV--State of Springs Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Sport Fish & Wildlife Restoration Program

This month the Texas Parks and Wildlife television series airs segments from the documentary Texas: The State of Springs. Series Producer, Don Cash.

One of the things that’s pointed out in the documentary is that water conservation in Texas is going to have to happen on private lands. We’re not going to get more rain; we’ve got to deal with the water supply that we receive, and that starts on the land. One of the landowners that we feature is David Bamberger. He and his wife Margaret have a ranch in Blanco County. They’ve had to remove a lot of cedar from it, but as David points out, removing the cedar is not the end of the problem.

Without a grass system that has roots down into the earth when that rain falls, it washes off. But if it falls on the grass, you’ve got miles of root systems and that water can now penetrate down in.

Also in July, we’ll head to the Panhandle where we look at water speculators who are looking at building pipelines from the Panhandle—south—to sell what they call surplus water.

There isn’t actually any surplus water in this area. All the water that’s here is going to be needed eventually.

So, there’s a lot of information in July about the state of springs in Texas, and what we can do to help preserve them for the future.

Go to passporttotexas.org and find a link to PBS stations that air the series.

That’s our show… with support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

TP&W TV--State of Springs Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas Outdoor Stories from Texas Parks and Wildlife

Alanna Jones’ mother insisted that her daughter spend time outdoors.

I was a part of some type of camping group every single summer. So, I spent a lot of time outdoors, but since I’ve been in college—not so much. But I get out when I can.

Alanna got outside when she was our Passport to Texas intern this spring. During an assignment covering the Texas River School, Alanna finally understood her mother’s wisdom.

Well, what the Texas River School does is it takes kids, fourth through sixth graders out on the river. What we did is we went up a river and had lunch; and they learned survival skills in the water. The whole time I was just thinking: Wow, you know, that was me as a kid. Not understanding what this experience is going to do for my life. Most of these kids learn their entire lives that the water is scary, that the outdoors is scary. While they were on the river, they saw everything. And because they were paddling themselves, it showed them that they could do more than they thought they could do. And, because of my experience at the Texas River School, it reaffirmed why my mom said, get outdoors, and as an adult I understand that now.

Alanna is on to her next adventure and we wish her luck.

Tell us your outdoor story at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show for today…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti

Outdoor Story: Alanna Jones Play Now | Play in Popup | Download