For Immediate Release – November 2, 2009

AUSTIN- This past year 253 individuals and 17 community groups volunteered over 4,100 hours of their time to help protect and maintain the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve and the Water Quality Protection Lands.

AWU will honor the volunteers on Saturday, November 7, with a dinner at the Rutherford House on the Onion Creek Management Unit of the Water Quality Protection Lands.

Managed by the Austin Water Utility's (AWU) Wildland Conservation Division, these lands-about 37,000 acres-protect Austin's endangered species and the area's water quality.

Volunteers participate in a variety of activities that contribute to the goals and mission of the both the Water Quality Protection Lands and Balcones Canyonlands Preserve. The tasks include: leading guided hikes for the public, biological monitoring of the endangered and protected species, removal of invasive plants, boundary and fence monitoring, ecological restoration, litter cleanups, tree planting, and outreach activities in the community.

For information on volunteering visit www.ci.austin.tx.us/water/wildland/volunteering.htm or contact Cappy Smith at 512-972-1687.

About the Wildlands
The City of Austin's wildlands provide benefits to our entire community. They are not parks, but rather public lands held in trust for a specific purpose based on the mission of the program under which they are managed. Those managed under the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve Program conserve habitat for eight endangered species and 27 species of concern. Those managed under the Division's Water Quality Protection Lands Program optimize the quantity and quality of water recharging the Barton Spring segment of the Edwards Aquifer.

Media Contact:
Jill Mayfield
Email to: Jill.Mayfield@ci.austin.tx.us
City of Austin Water Utility
(512) 972-0150; pgr.(512) 802-8956