Environmental

Chairman: Justin Hillis Meets first Thursday of month, 6:00 pm, Dido's Restaurant

Mission Statement:

• Encourage the establishment of policies and programs that preserve and protect open space, forests, prairies and wetlands of our San Bernard River watershed.
• Maintain and protect natural habitat for native plants and wildlife.
• Preserve and improve water quality.
• Enhance recreational usage and encourage economic development consistent with resource protection.

Chairman: Justin Hillis, Construction and Real Estate

Consultant & Co-chair: Susie Alford, President, CEO Berg Oliver

 

Committee:

Barbara Fratila  - Attorney At Law

Jim Hillis - Retired Ph.D. Chemistry 

Fred Kanter - Retired Pipeline Engineer, member Citizens Advisory Panel, Restaurant Owner
Brian Meagher - Chemical Engineer, Project Manager BASF
Tom Ronayne - Retired Engineer and member Citizens Advisory Panel

Linda & Ken Wright - Retired Graphic Designers

Valroy & Adalia Maudlin - Retired Chemical Engineer and Teacher

Wayne Head - Retired Business Owner

Denise & Pat Wolever - Business Owner

 

The Environmental Committee is the most important function of the entire organization. It is a multi-faceted group that requires team leaders to act independently for specific projects. For example:

• Testing - A group of volunteers sample and analyze the San Bernard River from their vantage point on the river each month and submit their findings to H-GAC’s Stream Team which is then incorporated in Austin with additional data at the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality (TCEQ) master database.
• Annually FOR hosts the San Bernard River Clean Up. Volunteers known as the “Clean Team” are asked to put their boats in the water or hop aboard a friend’s boat and pull trash out of the river. As needed heavy debris days are scheduled to remove large and/or concentrated debris areas. This event is a great community rallying celebration that helps us unite in the true meaning of “Friends Of the River”.
• Phillips 66 and ChevronPhillips host a quarterly Citizens Advisory Panel meeting designed to keep the public informed about environmental, health and safety concerns at their Sweeny complexes. We have three volunteers currently representing FOR on the panel.
• There are two Environmental Committee members committed to overseeing the welfare of this precious county asset, Hanson Riverside County Park.
• FOR has contracted with Texas Dept of Transportation (TX DOT) to de-litter a two mile section of FM 2611. Contractually FOR has agreed to have four “Trash Pick Ups” (Adopt A Highway) per year. The thought behind this volunteer effort is to get the trash off the highway before it gets in the river. The dates are posted below and volunteers are welcome!

The remainder of FOR environmental emphasis occurs inside the formal Environmental Committee. If you would like additional information on the aforementioned specialized specific projects or other environmental projects like land trusts, SEP or conservation easements, please use the Contact Us pagel and we will be happy to contact you personally to obtain your input, ideas or field your questions.

Past Environmental Chairmen: Fred Kanter 2006-07, Tom Valliere 2008-10, Barbara Fratila 2011- July 2016, Tim Logan 2016-2019

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FOR Receives H-GAC Recognition

Friends of the River San Bernard received “Special Recognition for Exemplary Environmental Advocacy by a Citizen’s Group” as part of Houston-Galveston Area Council's 2020 “Water Innovation Strategies of Excellence (WISE) Awards”. Justin Hillis, FOR’s Environmental Committee Chairman, accepted the award on behalf of FOR during a “virtual presentation” ceremony on February 5th.

 

 

Stream Team Water Quality Tests on the San Bernard 

 

Samples are taken each month at different areas of the river reporting the pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and other indicators of water quality in the San Bernard. The reports are sent to Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) Texas Watch Clean Rivers program in cooperation with TCEQ, U.S. EPA and Texas State University Dept. of Geography.   FOR Director Valroy Maudlin and FOR Environmental Committee Chairman Tim Logan are the Stream Team citizen monitors responsible for taking these water samples.

• Texas Stream Team Training Class Sep 16, 2016
• Texas Stream Team Training Class April 10, 2014

Texas Stream Team Training May 1, 2010 Having completed Phase I and II training for becoming a Certified Water Quality Monitor are, l. to r., Greg Davis, Ken Wright, Vanessa Taylor-Certified Water Quality Monitor, Valroy Maudlin, Aubin Phillips, Brett Jordon, Kristi Corse-Texas Stream Team Instructor, Curtis Wilson and Jeremy Jett

 

The first two phases of a three phase Texas Stream Team training program was held at the FOR Community Center on Saturday, May 1, 2010. Houston-Galvestion Area Council (H-GAC) trains Texas Stream Team volunteers how to collect quality assured river water samples that can be used to make environmentally sound decisions concerning the San Bernard.

 

Volunteers complete three phases of training using a test kit that measures physical and chemical parameters in water. They are asked to monitor their site(s) monthly at the same time of day each month, for a two year commitment. Monitoring takes approximately one to two hours

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Watershed Signs

Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) received funding from the Clean Rivers Program for 15 highway San Bernard watershed signs. Above is a map of the locations of the signs that help people get to know their watershed. Read about the San Bernard River Watershed Protection Plan (San Bernard WPP) developed by H-GAC.

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FOR San Bernard Natural Area Acquisition Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) - 35 Acres Added to SEP

Environmental Committee members, L. to R., Ken Wright, Chairman Barbara Fratila, Tom Ronayne, Fred Kanter and John Moore, property owner.

On December 13, 2013, members of the Friends of the River San Bernard Environmental Committee met with John Moore, son of Edwin Dyer Moore, for the signing of the Second Amendment to the Deed of Conservation Easement that added 35 acres to the easement held by Wetlands America Trust, Inc. on behalf of Ducks Unlimited. Funds for the acquisition of the acreage came from payments made to the FOR Natural Area Acquisition Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) approved by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). 

 

105 acres of the Moore property, adjacent to the San Bernard river, are covered by the conservation easement.

 

FOR Retires $75,000 Conservation Easement Note

Front page reprint, Thursday, July 28, 2011   In less than one year, Friends of the River San Bernard has been able to retire a $75,000 Conservation Easement Note, securing the environmental protection of a portion of the river.   According to a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department handbook, “A conservation easement is a restriction landowners voluntarily place on specified uses of their property to protect natural productive or cultural features. A conservation easement is recorded as a written legal agreement between the landowner and the holder of the easement, which may be either a nonprofit conservation organization or government agency.” Landowners retain legal title to their property and can choose how they wish to limit development of the property. “For example, a landowner donating a conservation easement could choose to limit the right to develop a property, but keep the rights to build a house, raise cattle and grow crops,” states the handbook. "The landowner may continue his or her current use of the property provided the resources the conservation easement is intended to protect are sustained.”   On September 11, 2010, (article below) FOR announced it had enacted a land conservation easement on the river adjoining another easement held by Ducks Unlimited. Together, these two easements put a two-mile stretch of the river under permanent development restrictions. The easement contains a landmark sycamore tree that is cited on the original land survey commissioned by Steven F. Austin. It marks the intersection of Ft. Bend, Brazoria and Wharton counties.   The $75,000 note was scheduled to be paid out over five years, but thanks to donations from local industries, fundraisers and Supplemental Environmental Program funds from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the note has been retired.

 

All 2020 Cleanup Programs have been canceled to COVID-19.

Adopt A Highway Committee

Co-Chairman  Mike Pudlo Committee: Anyone who picks up trash

Co-Chairman Tom Ronayne

 

• Sat 7Dec19 Last trash pick=up of 2019
• Sat 2Nov19 Trash collected on FM 2611
• Sat 2Mar19 Trash collected on FM 2611
• Sat, 3Nov18, Trash collected on FM 2611
• Sat, 28Jul18 Amazing Job Done by FOR Adopt-a-Highway Volunteers
• Sat, 9Jun18 Trash collected on FM 2611
• Sat, 4Nov17 Trash collected on FM 2611
• Sat, 3Jun17 Trash collected on FM 2611
• Sat, 21Jan17 Trash collected on FM 2611
• Sat, 5Nov16  Trash collected on FM 2611
• Sat, 5Mar16  Trash collected on FM 2611
• Sat, 20Jun15, Trash pickup on FM 2611
• Sat, 11Apr15, EVENT CANCELLED. Area not mowed by TXDOT. To be rescheduled.
• Sat, 8Nov14 Trash pickup on FM 2611
• Sat, 17May14 Trash pickup on FM 2611
• Sat, 15Feb14 Trash pickup on FM 2611 
• Sat, 14Sep13 Trash Picked up on FM 2611 
• Sat, 22Jun13 FM 2611 Gets a Cleaning
• Sat, 16Feb13 Cleanup of FM 2611
• Sat, 1Dec12  CANCELLED - TO BE RESCHEDULED
• Sat, 6Oct12   Third Cleanup of FM 2611
• Sat, 16Jun12 Second Cleanup of FM 2611
• Sat, 14Apr12 Coincides with the Don't Mess With Texas "Trash-Off"
• Sat, 3Dec11  Adopt A Highway Cleans Up FM 2611
• Sat, 1Oct11  Adopt A Highway
• Sat, 2Apr11  Don't Mess with Texas    Trash Off Event
• Sat, 12Feb11  Adopt A Highway

 

• Sat 22Jun19 Schedule and Trash Mash River Clean up 
• Sat 30Sep18 Mini River Cleanup
• Feb 16, 2018 TXGLO Works its Way Up River
• Feb 7, 2018 TXGLO Removes Debris From River
• 2017 annual River Cleanup cancelled due to Hurricane Harvey flooding devastation
• Sat 10Sep16 Schedule and San Bernard River Clean Up Held
• Sat 12Sep15 Schedule and FOR San Bernard Team Cleans Up
• Sat 13Sep14  Schedule  / Annual River Cleanup / Newspaper Photo / Newspaper "Acclaim"
• Sat 11May13 Schedule and Annual River Cleanup
• Sat 12May12 Schedule and Annual River Cleanup

• Sat 30Apr11  Schedule and Annual River Cleanup 8,000 pounds of trash collected 
• Sat, 24Apr10 Approximately 20 boats with 50 volunteers, including the San Jacinto Junior Girl Scout Troup 25102, participated in the annual river clean. Volunteers removed 8,300 lbs. of debris and trash from the water and banks of the SBR and the beach at the mouth. Trash drop off points were located at Hanson Park, FM 521 boat ramp, Churchill Bridge boat ramp, and River’s End boat ramp. It was followed by a hot dog social at the home of Vanessa and Nelson Taylor.