City of Austin Efforts to Protect Barton Springs and the Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer

Barton Springs is a collection of several large karst springs that feed a public swimming area in the heart of the most popular public parks in Austin, Texas. The City of Austin (COA) has long recognized that Barton Springs is a unique resource worth protecting due to its historical importance, community value, utilization by endangered species and limited role as a source for drinking water. Protection of the springs can only be accomplished through protection of the watersheds that ultimately feed into the Barton Springs segment of the Edwards Aquifer. Since the COA only has jurisdiction over about 1/3 of the approximately 350 square mile area that contributes water to the aquifer and then to Barton Springs, protection efforts are three-fold and include science, policy and outright land purchases (or the purchase of development rights through conservation easements). Scientific data collection includes geologic mapping, karst feature identification, groundwater tracing, water quality monitoring, and recharge and discharge measurements. Policy efforts cover development ordinances, cooperation with state and local regulatory authorities, partnering with other public and private organizations, community education, and emergency spill response. Public bonds are used to support the purchase of land in fee simple and conservation easements on private lands. Management efforts on fee simple lands include ecological restoration to optimize water quality and quantity protection and utilize a number of standard land management practices such as prescribed fire and re-seeding of native species. In addition some karst specific actions are also implemented such as the identification and evaluation of recharge features, as well as the protection and maintenance of karst features to maintain existing levels of recharge to the aquifer. To date in the Barton Springs watershed, COA has preserved over 23,000 acres of open space, approximately a 60/40 split between conservation easements and fee simple acquisitions.