HONEY CREEK SPRING RANCH BECOMES LATEST CONSERVATION ACHIEVEMENT IN CENTRAL TEXAS BY THE NATURE CONSERVANCY
N
ew conservation protections are being added in Comal County thanks to the combined efforts of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), The Nature Conservancy (TNC), and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) to safeguard Honey Creek Spring Ranch from future development. Along with a significant bargain sale from the landowners, the Honey Creek Spring Ranch project was funded by the Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Council in 2019 and is one of the most recent properties benefiting from the protections of TPWD’s Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Program (TFRLCP) and NRCS’s Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP). TNC worked with the landowners to apply for this funding and complete the transaction. “The Agriculture Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) is a valuable tool to protect the agricultural use and conservation values of the land,” said Kristy Oates, NRCS state conservationist for Texas. “Some of the many benefits of ACEP include keeping agricultural land in the family, protecting our nation’s best agricultural soils or grasslands, preserving wildlife habitat and protecting biodiversity while sequestering carbon and reducing greenhouse gases. This program helps keep working lands working, especially in areas experiencing development pressure.” The newly conserved Honey Creek Spring Ranch builds on a history of collaborative conservation efforts in the region. In 1981, TNC acquired 1,825 acres in Comal County, which were transferred in 1985 to TPWD to create the 2,294-acre Honey Creek State Natural Area. This easement at Honey Creek Spring Ranch, which will remain privately owned and managed, now
8
Ag Mag THEAGMAG.ORG
adds an additional 621 acres to these protected lands. “Honey Creek Spring Ranch is home to critical wildlife species and unspoiled ecological features which are quickly disappearing from Texas. Six generations of my family have called this special place home,” said co-landowner Joyce Moore. “And after 150 years, our stewardship efforts have always included leaving the land in a healthier state. With rampant development now occurring throughout the area, it is even more critical for my family to continue this legacy of conservation into the future.” Owned and operated by Moore’s family since its inception in 1871, Honey Creek Spring Ranch has long served as a site of ecological importance. The property is home to endangered golden-cheeked warblers and to black-capped vireos and a number of other species in decline. Honey Creek Cave, the largest cave system in Texas, runs underneath the property—with several miles of underground river emerging from the ranch’s namesake spring as the primary source of Honey Creek, an important tributary of the Guadalupe River. The cave is in a drainage area for the Edwards Aquifer, which supplies drinking water to nearly two million Texans and the City of San Antonio. It contains nu-
