Forum will provide information on Colorado River flow study
By BARRY HALVORSON bhalvorson@journal-spectator.com

With state officials and scientists scheduled to start looking into environmental river flow protection in the Colorado and Guadalupe River basins and Matagorda and San Antonio Bays soon, the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club is holding a free informational forum to give the public the tools to participate.

The first of two such forums is scheduled for Tuesday, May 20 at the Bay City Civic Center.

A similar forum will be held in Victoria on May 21. The event at the civic center is free and open to the public. Food and drinks will be provided for attendees from 6 to 7 p.m. Presentations will begin at 7 p.m. and the sessions will conclude by 9 p.m. Ample time will be provided for questions from the audience, said Jennifer Walker, water resources specialist with the Sierra Club.

"We're talking about ground breaking environmental legislation," Walker said. "The studies of the river basins and bays can be really good and productive if the people involved participate. We want to create something that will push environmental water quality that everyone can live with in the future."

The studies currently being conducted on Texas river basins and bays were ordered as part of Senate Bill 3, passed by the state legislature in 2007. The studies started last year with the Sabine and Brazos River basins and Galveston Bay and will move into the Matagorda-San Antonio Bay areas early this fall, Walker said. The studies will help to legally define the amount of freshwater the Colorado River and Matagorda Bay need to remain viable.

"Matagorda Bay needs freshwater from the Colorado River to support fish, shrimp, crabs and oysters," Walker said. "As the state's population grows, however, there are increasing demands on the Colorado that could affect the bay. The idea is to inform the population in advance of the process on how the process works and how they can get involved. The public has a unique opportunity to get involved and to help make decisions about the future of the Colorado River and Matagorda Bay."

The Sierra Club requests people planning to attend please RSVP at www.texaswatermatters.org so adequate arrangements may be made for food and seating.