April 13 – 15, 2015: River Watchers from Reagan High School participated in a Service Learning Project along a portion of the Colorado River that is managed and protected by The Chautauqua Foundation and Texas River School. Many thanks to Joe Kendall for partnering with us! In 2014, Austin Youth River Watch was the recipient of the Impact Austin Environment Grant. With this funding and support, we have been able to launch a Service Learning Program that engages River Watchers in hands-on, stream improvement projects. These projects include bank stabilization, vegetation management, trail building, and a volunteer work day on site. This project at the Texas River School site is the eighth Service Learning Project for the 2014-2015 school year.
April 13, 2015
Four River Watchers from Reagan High School begin their project by completing the pre-assessment report to analyze the area, observe current riparian vegetation, learn more about Colorado River hydrology, discuss proper riparian zone functioning and benefits, and consider strategies for improving the riparian corridor.
April 14, 2015
Four River Watchers from Reagan High School teamed up with Texas River School to learn more about beneficial native species in riparian areas. They planted 25 Eastern Gamagrass plugs along the streambank.
April 15, 2015
Four River Watchers from Reagan High School continued planting beneficial native species along the riparian areas. They planted 25 Eastern Gamagrass plugs, 13 Switchgrass plugs, 14 Maximilian Sunflower, and 14 Indiangrass plugs. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department visited our project site and filmed River Watchers and Staff to highlight the TPWD Public Fishing Access Program.
