' ... all things merge into one ... '

Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs.
I am haunted by waters. 

― Norman Maclean, A River Runs Through It and Other Stories

Trinity River Land and Water Summit set Oct. 2 in Athens

ATHENS – The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and Trinity Waters will conduct the Trinity River Land and Water Summit from 8 a.m.- 4 p.m. Oct. 2 at the Cain Center, 915 S. Palestine St. in Athens.
The summit will address water quality and watershed management issues in the middle Trinity River Basin, said Blake Alldredge, AgriLife Extension associate education and outreach coordinator for Trinity Waters at College Station.
There is no cost for the event or accompanying breakfast and lunch, but an RSVP is required. RSVP online at http://nrt.tamu.edu/schedule, then go to Trinity River Land and Water Summit or contact Alldredge at 979-845-0916, balldredge@tamu.edu.
Two Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units in the general category will be offered.
“The goal of the summit is to work with landowners and other stakeholders to prioritize watersheds for future planning efforts and to develop monitoring strategies in those watersheds,” Alldredge said. “Cattle producers are key to solving water resource challenges in the Trinity River Basin, so cattle production will be the major focus of the summit.
The event’s scheduled keynote speakers are Bob McCan, president-elect of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and Todd Staples, Texas Commissioner of Agriculture.
Alldredge said landowners attending the summit can learn how watershed management strategies result in greater land productivity and sustainability, and how those efforts can benefit the 45 percent of all Texans who depend on the Trinity River to meet their water needs.
“Landowners are highly encouraged to attend to be part of future efforts to improve the water, agriculture and wildlife resources of the Trinity River basin,” Alldredge said.
Other presentation topics will include the value of watershed monitoring and land stewardship benefits to society. The summit will also include a panel of experts who will discuss the importance of the urban-rural connection in the Trinity River Basin and address attendees’ questions.
Planning efforts for the following watersheds will be discussed: Richland-Chambers Reservoir in Navarro, Ellis, Hill and Johnson counties; Catfish Creek in Henderson and Anderson counties; Tehuacana Creek in Navarro, Limestone and Freestone counties; Upper Keechi Creek in Freestone and Leon counties; and Bedias Creek in Grimes, Walker and Madison counties.
The Building Partnerships for Cooperative Conservation in the Trinity River Basin project is managed by the Texas Water Resources Institute and funded by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board through a Clean Water Act grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
---TAMU press release

'Meeting the water needs of Texans and wildlife' webinar Sept. 12

A “Meeting the Water Needs of Texans and Wildlife” webinar is set from noon-1 p.m. Sept. 12. This is the third and final installment of a summer series conducted by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and Trinity Waters. To view the webinar, go to the Forestry Webinars Portal at http://forestrywebinars.net/ and click on the title at least three days prior to the airing date to ensure your Java version is compatible with the webinar system. “Treasuring the Trinity: Challenges and Opportunities” and “Turning Your Land Into a Sponge,” the first two webinars, are also available under the “Previous Webinar” tab.
Dr. Jim Cathey, AgriLife Extension wildlife specialist at College Station, will present the upcoming webinar which focuses on how proper land stewardship on private property can enhance wildlife habitat and agricultural productivity while greatly improving the quality and quantity of water coming off the land.
Cathey will focus on the land management techniques necessary to accomplish those goals. He will also speak on AgriLife Extension’s and Trinity Waters’ and other partners’ efforts to improve the Trinity River basin’s water resources.
Other topics will include prairie restoration for quail, livestock production and water quality, North Texas water districts’ wetland efforts to enhance water supplies while providing large areas of wildlife habitat, and how the Chambers Creek Water Quality Initiative provides technical and financial help to landowners implementing conservation practices in Ellis and Navarro counties.
For more information on the webinars or the “Building Partnerships for Cooperative Conservation in the Trinity River Basin” project, visit the Trinity Rivers website at http://trinitywaters.org.
The Building Partnerships for Cooperative Conservation in the Trinity River Basin project is managed by the Texas Water Resources Institute and funded by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board through a Clean Water Act grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
--- TAMU press release

TCEQ launches anti-illegal dumping initiative

Through a partnership between the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and Texas Department of Transportation, the Don’t Mess with Texas Water program seeks to help prevent illegal dumping by placing road signs along major highway water crossings.
The signs have a toll-free number that people can call to report illegal dumping. TCEQ forwards these calls to the appropriate local enforcement agency that handles complaints of illegal dumping for a participating area.
Signs are already up in Harlingen, Texas, and the TCEQ is seeking more local governments to participate in the program.
For more information about the program or about participating,  contact Devon Ryan, DMWTW coordinator, at 512-239-6596 or devon.ryan@tceq.texas.gov.

Farmers show support of biosolids use, cite yields, economics

MIDLOTHIAN – Farmers were in the majority during the Aug. 14 biosolids stakeholders meeting at the Midlothian Conference Center. And, one by one, they stepped to the microphone to give staff members with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality their comments about the benefits of land application of biosolids.

The farming practice, which has been in use in Ellis County since the early 1990s, has come under fire from some residents who have cited odor-related issues.

State Rep. Jim Pitts and County Commissioner Pct. 3 Paul Perry were both on hand to address TCEQ staff members, saying their respective offices had received dozens of complaints through the years.

TCEQ records indicate two dozen complaints filed in the last four years directly with the state agency: eight in fiscal year 2013, 10 in 2012, five in 2011 and one in 2010. None of those complaints have resulted in a finding of violation, the TCEQ staff said.

The stakeholder meeting was the result of a rule-change petition filed with the TCEQ by rural Midlothian resident Cole Turner. If approved, farmers would no longer be able to apply the material within three miles of a city limits.

Available information indicates that Ellis County has 47,000 acres comprising 69 sites and 34 landowners that have submitted a letter of notice to the TCEQ that they want biosolids applications. Of that noticed acreage, from 3,600 to 4,200 acres have the material applied on an annual basis.

Two sides on the issue

Turner was the first to speak during the meeting’s comment portion and said he’s “sick and tired” of the material being applied to acreage near his home. For up to three months at a time, the smell is so intense that it prevents his family from enjoying the out of doors, he said, describing the odor as “real close to death.” The number of trucks on the road beginning at 5 a.m. is another issue, he said.

“Is there a definition on farming?” Turner asked, questioning the topical application of biosolids and suggesting it be plowed into the ground and not allowed to remain on the surface.

View Turner’s petition online at http://www7.tceq.state.tx.us/uploads/eagendas/Agendas/2013/6-18-2013/2013-033-RUL-%20Petition.pdf.

Dickey Ray spoke next and said he was the rancher applying the biosolids in Turner’s area.

“Mr. Turner knew I applied this product before he bought his property,” Ray said, saying he’d been using biosolids since 1998. “We try to do it in January and February, when people aren’t outside as much. We’ve increased the setbacks … . I don’t know what else we can do.”

Ray raises grass and cattle and noted the cost savings between biosolids and commercial fertilizers at $20/acre vs. $203.50/acre, respectively.

Another resident in the primary area of complaints, Craig Monk, said the three-mile prohibition wasn’t intended to hurt anyone. Among his concerns, Monk cited a lack of information about the practice and said the product’s safety can’t be assured.

Bristol rancher Lonnie Magness told the TCEQ staff that biosolids have saved him “a ton of money” while increasing his hay yields.

“There is a smell, but it’s not that long,” he said before responding to health concerns raised by those against the practice.

“I’ve never seen one of my cows pick up a piece of it and chew on it,” Magness said. “My cattle don’t glow in the dark.”

As did others, Magness spoke about the farmer’s role in the community.

“Everybody in this room gets something from the farmer,” he said. “If the farmers aren’t here, everyone’s going to starve to death and run around butt-naked.”

Fifth-generation farmer Todd Kimbrell Jr. said the organic nutrients in biosolids were much better than the inorganics found in commercial fertilizers. Numerous soil tests have been conducted on his acreage, he said, noting, “The tests have proven time and time again what this is doing for the soil.”

The economics

Those using the product emphasized the economics involved.

Rancher Larry Jones said it would cost him $43,920 to use commercial fertilizer on his 240 acres as opposed to using the much-less expensive biosolids, which he said was “punched” into the soil on his land.

“Biosolids allows us to raise hay and make a profit,” he said. “That $43,920 is more than what (he and his wife) make on Social Security.”

Kenneth Braddock, who oversees a ranching operation that spans Ellis, Kaufman and Navarro counties, said the savings were in the millions and noted recent soil testing on grasslands indicated a nutrient value worth $473 an acre as a result of the biosolids. To have achieved that value with commercial fertilizers would have cost about $800 an acre, he said, saying the savings have allowed the operation to put its resources toward such management practices as clearing mesquite.

As did others, Braddock questioned the three-mile radius, saying cities in Ellis County had annexed down roadways and out into the county. Would the three-miles extend from those roadways as well? he asked, with another speaker calculating there would be a significant loss of eligible land if the prohibition extended from the roadways.

Charles Mitchell said he’d been trying for four years to get into the biosolids program, which has a waiting list.

“My neighbor, who’s in the program, is making three times the hay I’m making,” he said of how well biosolids land applications work.

Third-generation farmer Ray Lynn Campbell described his results: “I’ve had significant, astronomical increases in yields. There’s no dispute on the economics. They’re sound.”

Majority support

In all, almost 20 farmers and ranchers from Ellis and surrounding counties expressed their support of the practice to the TCEQ staff during the meeting, which lasted almost three hours. Non-farmers also spoke in favor of biosolids use.

Martha Davis said she lived near farmers using the material.

“The smell goes away. It doesn’t bother me,” said Davis, who feeds her horses biosolids-fertilized hay. “I have very healthy horses.”

Jason Bourgeois said he moved to Midlothian to get away from the city and enjoy the country. While he doesn’t appreciate the smell of biosolids, he said it didn’t affect him or his lifestyle.

“I appreciate all of the farmers in Midlothian,” he said.

Leslie McFarland said he and the other farmers hadn’t picked up their farms to move closer to urban areas.

“The city came out to us,” he said, noting that he and his wife have personally lost three condemnation cases involving part of their farm to roads and utilities as a result of urban sprawl. “Where’d that land come from? Where did it come off?”

It’s a matter of learning to co-exist, he said, but “You kind of need to give us (farmers) a little slack.”

Written comments being accepted

It was in June that Turner addressed TCEQ commissioners in Austin after having filed his petition for a rule change. After hearing from people on both sides of the issue during that meeting, the commissioners directed staff members to hold stakeholder meetings in different areas of the state and collect comments, suggestions and other information.

Additional stakeholder meetings will be held Aug. 22 in Brookshire and Aug. 28 in Austin. One was held earlier this month in Springtown.

Written comments will be accepted on the issue until Aug. 30 and can be mailed to Brian Sierant, TCEQ Water Quality Division, P.O. Box 13087, MC-148, Austin, TX 78711-3087. Comments also may be submitted via email to Brian.Sierant@tceq.texas.gov. For questions or additional information, contact Sierant by email or by phone at 512-239-1375.

The TCEQ executive director is slated to present findings and recommendations on the issue to the agency’s commissioners during their Nov. 20 meeting in Austin.


Musing Green is a graduate project of Jo Ann Livingston, who is completing her master's degree at the Frank W. Mayborn Graduate Institute of Journalism at the University of North Texas. The focus is on environmental and nature-related topics. Visit the website at www.musinggreen.com, the blog at musinggreen.blogspot.com or the Musing Green Facebook page. A current topic of interest is the use of biosolids in Ellis County.

Biosolids input meeting Aug. 14 in Ellis County

The public is invited to attend a stakeholder meeting Aug. 14 relating to the land application of biosolids in Ellis County.
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality staff members will be on hand to receive input on the farming practice, which has come under fire in some areas of the county.
Available information indicates that Ellis County has 47,000 acres comprising 69 sites and 34 landowners that have submitted a letter of notice to the TCEQ that they want biosolids applications. Of that noticed acreage, from 3,600 to 4,200 acres will have the material applied to the soil on an annual basis.
The meeting, which will begin at 7 p.m. at the Midlothian Conference Center, is the result of a rule-change petition filed by Midlothian area resident Cole Turner in May. The petition cites nuisance odor issues and asks that the state’s environmental regulatory agency prohibit the land application of sewer sludge in or within three miles of a city limit in a county with a population of 140,000 or more that is located adjacent to a county with a population between 2 million and 4 million.
TCEQ commissioners discussed the rule-change petition during their June meeting in Austin, with a consensus that the agency’s staff take a look at the issue from a statewide perspective. In addition to the meeting in Ellis County, others are scheduled for Aug. 13 in Springtown, Aug. 22 in Brookshire and Aug. 28 in Austin.
The meeting topics will include:
• Background and rulemaking process
• Slideshow – what are biosolids; class A vs. class B sewage sludge; permits vs. notification authorizations.
• Overview of petition
• Rulemaking process and timeline
• Additional stakeholder involvement in the rulemaking process
• Purpose of the stakeholder meetings (rule and non-rule options to address odors at bulk sewage sludge application sites)
• Field investigations
• Documenting nuisance conditions
• Citizen-collected evidence
• Non-rulemaking options
• Permit provisions triggered by verified nuisance odors for generators and haulers/land applicators
• Rulemaking options
• Sewage sludge treatment processes – polymer addition, dewatering, composting, pelletization, lime stabilization, heat addition
• Transportation, staging and storage – covered vs. uncovered storage areas, storage and staging area holding times
• Management practices and site restrictions – buffer zones, weather forecasts, scheduling, slope requirements, applying through incorporation vs. surface spreading, requirements to reduce transport off-site on vehicle tires, additives, odor control plans, notification requirements
• Open discussion and comments
Written comments are being accepted on the issue until Aug. 30 and can be mailed to Brian Sierant, TCEQ Water Quality Division, P.O. Box 13087, MC-148, Austin, TX 78711-3087. Comments also may be submitted via email to Brian.Sierant@tceq.texas.gov. For questions or additional information, contact Sierant by email or by phone at 512-239-1375.
The TCEQ executive director is slated to present findings and recommendations on the issue, as gathered through the stakeholder meetings and comments, to the agency’s commissioners during their Nov. 20 meeting in Austin.
The petition can be viewed online at the TCEQ’s website http://www7.tceq.state.tx.us/uploads/eagendas/Agendas/2013/6-18-2013/2013-033-RUL-%20Petition.pdf


Musing Green is a graduate project of Jo Ann Livingston, who is completing her master's degree at the Frank W. Mayborn Graduate Institute of Journalism at the University of North Texas. The focus is on environmental and nature-related topics. Visit the website at www.musinggreen.com, the blog at musinggreen.blogspot.com or the Musing Green Facebook page. A current topic of interest is the use of biosolids in Ellis County.

TAMU: New AgriLife Extension native grassland monitoring/management publication announced

COLLEGE STATION – The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service has a new publication available to help landowners monitor and manage the health of their native rangeland, said the author.

(Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service photo)

The publication, Native Grassland Monitoring and Management, targets landowners within the Trinity River Basin and similar areas, said Blake Alldredge, AgriLife Extension associate with Texas A&M University’s wildlife and fisheries department at College Station.

He said the publication describes in detail several range monitoring and management techniques. It is now available as publication WF-001on the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Bookstore website at http://agrilifebookstore.org . Alldredge noted that the monitoring and management information offered is applicable across the state.

“Monitoring the ecological site condition or health of the land is necessary for landowners to evaluate how past land management decisions are affecting the plant, soil and water resources of the landscape,” Alldredge said. “Monitoring specifically examines the plant species present and how much area they cover. Being able to see how range conditions change over time, which is also known as range trend, will allow land managers to make the best management decisions as conditions change.”

The monitoring techniques covered in the publication will be of particular help to wildlife managers and livestock producers to help them determine what management activities are needed to reverse negative range trends, he said.

The monitoring techniques covered in the publication include photo points, grazing exclosures, nest and cover surveys, grass stubble height surveys and forage clipping surveys. Management techniques covered include chemical and mechanical treatments, prescribed burning, disking, shredding and grazing.

“The main goal of the publication is to connect land monitoring and management techniques with proper watershed protection, because they are one and the same,” Alldredge said. “Well-managed native grasslands and tame pastures are important to watershed protection as they increase the water storage capacity of the soil, reduce erosion, promote groundwater recharge and provide more efficient nutrient absorption. Landowners also benefit from increased forage production and quality wildlife habitat.”

Alldredge said his bottomline hope is that the publication will aid the watershed enhancement efforts of AgriLife Extension, Trinity Waters and other groups seeking to improve the wildlife and water quality resources in the Trinity River basin.

The publication was produced through the Building Partnerships for Cooperative Conservation Initiative of the Trinity River basin project. The project is funded by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board through a Clean Water Act grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and is managed by the Texas Water Resources Institute. Through this initiative, Alldredge said AgriLife Extension has partnered with Trinity Waters, a landowner organization based in the Trinity River basin, to produce educational materials related to water and wildlife conservation for landowners.

For more information, contact Alldredge at balldredge@tamu.edu.