The Guadalupe-Blanco River Trust (GBR Trust) recently purchased 170 acres in Calhoun County immediately adjacent to the existing 646 acre Hog and Schwing’s Bayou Preserve. With funding provided from the Coastal Impact Assistance program (CIAP) through the Texas General Land Office (GLO) the GBR Trust acquired an important parcel of wetlands and wildlife habitat that will link the original preserve property to the Guadalupe Delta Wildife Management Area administered by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

The property lies in an area of the state important to both migratory and resident wildlife species and is just as important for the water quality for the bays and estuaries just downstream.

This area of the Texas Coast is winter home to large numbers of waterfowl who migrate up and down the Central Flyway and also supports endangered species such as the Whooping Crane.

The GBR Trust purchase of the 170-acre tract was made possible through the CIAP, which is a federally funded program managed nationally by the Department of the Interior. The CIAP program, administered in Texas by the GLO, provides a portion of federal royalties on oil and gas production back to the states for coastal projects, including the conservation of important wildlife habitats and wetlands.

The mission of the Guadalupe-Blanco River Trust is to preserve the unique natural heritage of the Guadalupe watershed for future generations, by protecting open landscapes, working farms and ranches, and wildlife habitat through conservation easements, education, and outreach that connects people to the water and the land.