SAN MARCOS RIVER FOUNDATION NEWSLETTER VOL. 12, NO. 1
Printed Quarterly -- January 10, 2002

ANNUAL MEETING/PARTY ON JANUARY 24, 2002

You are cordially invited to the festive annual San Marcos River Foundation Membership Meeting on Thursday evening January 24 at 6 p.m. at the Public Library's large meeting room. The refreshments will be served at 6, and then at 7 the business meeting will begin. An election of four board members will be held, and bylaw changes will be voted on (see articles on page 2). A brief review will be done of the past year, and members will be urged to ask questions and make suggestions to the board. Please mark your calendars so you won't miss this party and meeting! The party will be also be a special occasion to honor those who started SMRF back in the early to mid-80's, and thank them. Former board members are especially urged to attend, so they can be thanked in person. Visitors who want to learn about SMRF are welcomed at this annual event, as they are welcomed to any meeting of the SMRF board, all year round.

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

I recently read a great quote credited to the Greek philosopher, Heraclitus: "It is not possible to step in the same river twice." I was reminded of this 2,500 year old maxim about change when we plunged into the river this New Year's Day and found it so changed from previous years. The River was flowing swiftly, and smelled so remarkably clean. It has been a good year for the River. But most years we can see the rapid changes happening in Texas, threatening river flows, so we know we must remain vigilant if we want to have clean water and wildlife for future generations of Texans. This annual New Year's Day Plunge into the River was a refreshing start for 2002--the River was so clear that it was really a pleasure to jump in, and the near 70 degree water temperature actually felt warm on the 34 degree day. The flow this January is over twice the amount of flow of January two years ago, so perhaps this will be one of the years that the River makes it through the summer with adequate flows, keeping the bays balanced and healthy at the coast. Last January the flow was fairly high, but not nearly as high as this year's 350 cubic feet per second!

My hope for the coming year is for more members and more grants to accomplish the River Foundation's many projects. Thanks for the tremendous support the membership has shown for the water right project this past year! We hope that SMRF's water right application for instream flows for our river and on to the Gulf Coast, will help bring about new awareness of the plight of our rivers, bays, and estuaries to all Texans. We are well on the way to that goal, thanks to all the donations you've given and the hearty support you've expressed in your calls, letters, and emails.

There are many other worthwhile projects that SMRF is involved in year-round, and we will be looking for grants to help fund some of those projects this year, since the interest income from our endowment fund will probably not be as high as in previous years. Fortunately, the kinds of projects SMRF has established (like monitoring the aquifer water quality in Ezell's Cave around the clock, supplying the River Rangers with test kits and supplies for their River testing, sponsoring River cleanups, and offering teacher training in our River curriculum developed by local teachers) are very suitable for grant funding. So we expect to be as busy as usual, carrying on our normal projects while watching to see what new projects are needed.

This is the time of year that membership dues are usually requested, so remember to use the envelope we inserted into the newsletter whenever you can, or use it as a reminder for later. We know that many of you are lifetime members, so if you are, please ignore this envelope and our dues request that we are placing in this newsletter for the general membership. We save postage money by combining our newsletter with our annual dues request, covering everyone with one mailing. We have two new dues levels which the board has agreed on this year: $35 for general membership, and $15 for students---the first time dues have ever increased for SMRF.

Enjoy all the great photos we have in this issue, as well as the chart of flood levels for the past 76 years, courtesy of the USGS website. You may want to hold onto this interesting chart for future reference so you, too, can use the USGS website to predict how high the flood will be, next time. See you at the party January 24!

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COME AND GET IT! LUNCH AT THE COTTAGE KITCHEN FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 1

Come have lunch and bring all your friends to the Cottage Kitchen in the Charles S. Cock House Museum, a little rock house at the corner of C. M. Allen Parkway & Hopkins Street from 11-1 on Friday, February 1, when SMRF will cook. Volunteer to bake a dessert, cook the Wednesday before, or serve as waitstaff if you have time, but above all, spread the word to all your friends, so they will come have lunch or pick it up to take elsewhere! To-go lunches, and a vegetarian alternative will be available, and $6 includes lunch, beverages,and a home-baked dessert. SMRF does this benefit every year to thank the Heritage Association for being the major donor to the SMRF endowment fund, and for their continued support since that generous beginning. Call 393-3787 to volunteer to help out with the luncheon. Or help by posting a notice on your office bulletin board to get people to plan ahead to attend. Any Friday luncheon would be a good one to attend, since different community groups serve lunch each week, to help the Heritage Association with its fundraising for historical preservation projects in San Marcos.

Pictured are SMRF volunteers at the Cottage Kitchen luncheon last year: Left to right, Kathryn Chaney, Tom Wassenich, Jerry Kimmel, and Kay Moore. They are real professionals, serving a tasty Italian lunch with a smile, with only a spattering of tomato sauce on their nice white aprons.

BOARD NOMINATIONS FOR ELECTIONS AT ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING

The slate of board members that will be presented by the nominating committee of Therese Whalen, Kathryn Chaney and Dianne Wassenich at the meeting is as follows:

Jack Fairchild is nominated for a three year term to replace Kathryn Chaney, the retiring board member.
Jon Cradit is re-nominated for a three year term, having completed a one-year term replacing a resigned board member. Therese Whalen is re-nominated for a second three year term.
Jim Blackburn is re-nominated for a three year term, having been appointed in October 2001 to replace a resigned board member.

SMRF appreciates Kathryn Chaney's work during her six years as a board member, and her enthusiasm and strong belief in river protection. Since two consecutive terms are the term limit in the bylaws, she is not running again. Nominations can be made in writing if the above slate does not meet the approval of members, and can also be made from the floor at the annual meeting, under certain conditions, according to the bylaws. For information, call 393-3787.

BYLAW AMENDMENTS TO BE VOTED ON AT THE ANNUAL MEETING

The board has approved three changes in bylaws in the past year, that the membership needs to vote on at this coming annual meeting. One is the changing of membership dues from $25 to $35 per year, and the addition of a student membership of $15. Another is the placing of undesignated donations into the general fund instead of the endowment fund, now that the endowment fund has reached $100,000. Some people do not check the box on the membership form to designate extra donations for a specific fund, and this bylaw change will make it clear where those funds are to be placed. The final bylaw change is to title the bylaws as The Bylaws of the San Marcos River Foundation, Inc. which were formerly titled The Bylaws of the San Marcos River Community Trust Fund, Inc., which was the early working title of SMRF and had never been corrected in the bylaws.

In researching the Articles of Incorporation and the early SMRF board minutes, it was found that the Articles listed the purpose as "to preserve and protect, on behalf of the public, access to the San Marcos River and its environs forever". Then the board minutes of 1986 reported that the board voted on a different statement of purpose "to protect the flow, natural beauty, and purity of the San Marcos River". The current board noted this variation, and voted to combine those two statements into one statement of purpose, adding the watershed and estuaries of the San Marcos River to the statement, since SMRF's work often involves the connected aquifer and estuary. The new statement to be voted on, at the membership meeting, is as follows:

The San Marcos River Foundation's purpose is to preserve and protect, on behalf of the public, access to the San Marcos River and its environs forever, and to protect the flow, purity, and natural beauty of the river along with its associated watershed and estuary system for future generations.

RIVER CLEANUP ON MARCH 2 - DON'T MISS IT!

The annual 90-mile San Marcos River Cleanup will be on March 2, and plenty of help is needed. Groups that want a specific area assigned can call organizer Tom Goynes at 392-6171. He can also tell volunteers where to leave their bags and piles of trash and tires for pickup by the various counties, landowners, businesses, and cities who collect and dispose of the trash. Some folks just want to meet in San Marcos at 10 a.m. to work on the parks in town or creeks that lead to the river, and that is also fine. If the road to the Lion's Tube Rental is still closed in March by the National Guard, call Goynes or watch the newspaper to find out where the river cleanup volunteers will meet this year in town.

Lots of bankwalkers are always needed, particularly at places like Stokes Park or Thompson's Islands, or even road crossings downstream. Since there was a flood in November, trash is everywhere, so there is plenty of work for all. Expert canoers will be assigned lower stretches, as the high flows will make the canoeing somewhat dangerous, particularly around the dams downstream of San Marcos. Whatever you do, make sure someone knows where you are and when you are expected back, if you are canoeing.

Make a reservation for the Thank-You-Barbecue dinner if you intend to attend that evening at 6 p.m.! And take all safety precautions you can think of: life jackets, poison ivy preventative or soap to wash off with afterwards, protective shoes and clothing, and gloves to handle trash. Work as little or as long as you have the time and energy to do so. Even if the entire flood debris pile cannot be cleaned up, you can make a difference by helping as much as you can. Canoe clubs from all over Texas come to clean up the San Marcos River each spring, so locals should thank them profusely. Those who wish to bake desserts for this event can call 393-3787---about 300 servings are needed.

This is a group of slightly damp volunteers at last spring's river cleanup. Despite the rain, tons of trash was picked up, from San Marcos to Gonzales. In the tall white hat on the left is Tom Goynes, cleanup organizer, and on the far left is Duane Te Grotenhuis who provides canoes from his TG Canoe Livery for the cleanup volunteers. Spencer's in Martindale provides a place for the barbecue, and also some canoes and shuttles, and Green Guy Recycling helps every year.

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FLOODS, HOW TO DETERMINE HOW HIGH THE PEAK WILL BE, AND WHEN

On the next page, there is a chart of the flow levels of all the major floods since 1925. SMRF members have found that going to the USGS website, where this info came from, allows them to monitor river levels during flood periods. Whenever heavy rain is reported in Blanco, Wimberley, or Kyle, this USGS website should be consulted by those who live on the San Marcos River downstream of the confluence with the Blanco River. Because there are no large recharge dams on the Blanco, and it has a large drainage area of creeks that supply it, it can flood quickly and violently.

This chart and the following instructions should be saved and posted where riverside members can refer to it during the next flood, so that predictions can be made of when the flood will hit and how high the flood will be. The TV stations do not warn people below the confluence of the Blanco and San Marcos when floods are on the way, as was found in 1998. The recent November 2001 flood prompted much better response from the Martindale police and County Sheriffs from Hays, Caldwell, and Guadalupe than in 1998. They are much better prepared to warn rural residents. It still helps to watch this on the website, to know exactly how high the flood will come, by comparing it to past floods.

To find out what the gauges on the Blanco River and other rivers measure at the actual time the site is looked at, go to http://www.usgs.gov/tx/nwis/current/?type=flow

Scroll down to the Guadalupe Basin, and click on Gauge 08171000 Blanco at Wimberley. In the second box on that page, under "Output Format", scroll down to "Table" and click on that so it will be highlighted. Then click on "Get Data". It will take a few minutes for the columns of data to show up below this box. Look at the dates and scroll down to today's date. (There will be seven days of stream flow in these columns of numbers, which are gauge measurements taken every fifteen minutes.) The information for that day will show whether the stream is rising, and how fast. Most people ignore the gauge height in feet, and just look at the CFS (cubic feet per second) to get the accurate story on where the flood is and how high it is rising. CFS measures how much water is flowing by, in volume.

Checking the gauge repeatedly at this website over several hours will allow the person to determine exactly when the peak of the flood comes at that gauge. Going back to the Guadalupe Basin page and checking the next gauge downstream, in Kyle, will help determine where the peak of the floodwaters is going and how fast it is traveling. Comparing it to the chart provided in this newsletter of historical floods since 1925 will make it clear how high the flood will be, particularly if the person has a clear idea of where recent floods rose to on their property. Floods generally take 8-10 hours to come from Wimberley to Martindale, but the November 2001 flood took only 7 hours.

Try this predicting technique out in minor flood events, to make sure the computer is set at the right website for rapid checking when an emergency arises. Email wassenich@sanmarcos.net if questions arise in these practice runs. Since power is often lost in big flood events, do not depend totally on the website, listen to radio and TV as well, especially NOAA weather radios. Since the Kyle gauge has not been there for as long as the Wimberley gauge, the historical information is compared to the Wimberley gauge in this newsletter. And the Kyle gauge sometimes fails and stops recording, which is not very helpful in an emergency. USGS is woefully underfunded, and needs many more gauges, and stronger mechanisms on some of the gauges they have, to withstand the force of the floodwaters.

THANKS TO SPECIAL DONORS

SMRF was happy to accept two special donations in recent months. Denny Thomas, who was one of the very hard-working original board members who raised lots of the original endowment fund for SMRF, sent in $2200 for the water right project, with wonderful encouraging words. And the Green Parrot musical benefit with local musicians playing for SMRF at the downtown bar, raised $700 in donations from those attending, as well as the staff. Manager Jeff Smith and owner Rick Travis did the entire benefit, without SMRF having to work on it, and the proceeds are much appreciated. Musicans contributing their time were Honey Brown, Randy Rogers Band, Joe Respondek, and Pavlov's Dog. Since Green Parrot has a younger clientele, this was a way to include a new segment of San Marcos in the water right project. SMRF newsletters went like hotcakes at the door, and some patrons filled out form letters on the spot, supporting the Lake Dunlap folks in their effort to clean up the New Braunfels wastewater discharges, since those blank letters were inserted in the last newsletter.

AQUARENA BOARDWALK DEDICATION

Tom Brandt looks over the lovely educational stations on the board walk in the slough. Others at the dedication enjoyed water lilies, native vegetation and birds at Aquarena Center during the opening ceremonies in December. Watch for periscopes, coming soon to view under the water in the slough adjoining Spring Lake.

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EXOTIC WEED IN RIVER IS BEING TARGETED BY U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE

A water plant native to Sri Lanka and popular as an aquarium plant has invaded the San Marcos River. A large colony of the plants has shown up below Stokes Park/Thompson's Islands, downstream from the state fish hatchery and the city's wastewater plant, before the confluence with the Blanco. First found in the river in 1993, increased numbers of the plant were showing up by 1998. U. S. Fish & Wildlife staff from the Endangered Species Refuge on McCarty Lane will team up with other state exotic plant specialists to try a new removal technique using machines to suck it out of the river and screen the debris to make sure small native fish are rescued. It is interesting to note that the exotic armored catfish finds this colony of plants particularly good habitat, so many of them will be removed too with this technique. This plant is considered dangerous to the survival of the wild rice, as it requires the same kind of habitat, and can choke it out with its rapid growth in large colonies. It has a long rhizome and spreads rapidly.

The name of the plant is Cryptocoryne beckettii, and it has long pale stems topped with burgundy and green leaves, with mostly green showing on the top of the leaf. They overlap to form a solid blanket of leaves in the water, under the surface. A photo of the plant is on the next page, with a quarter coin in the picture to estimate size. We will try to get a plant to show off at the annual meeting, and will have color pictures available to see. All river users are urged to look for this plant and see if it is appearing anywhere else in our river system, and report it if found to Paula Powers at 353-0011 ext.228. They would like to eradicate this plant before it gets even more established.

BIRDING TRAIL MAPS COMING OUT SOON

Watch for the release this April of the Central Texas Birding and Wildlife Trail Map by Texas Parks & Wildlife. The Coastal Birding Trail maps resulted in a booming increase in the tourism economy of the Gulf Coast, with many visitors coming from other states and countries to see the birds. Towns built viewing platforms, board walks, gardens, or blinds in some spots, and the state put up signs noting the best places to stop and see birds. SMRF nominated fifteen sites, including some of the parks and greenspaces in San Marcos. Aquarena was nominated by their staff as well. It is not known how many of the San Marcos sites will make it onto the map, so SMRF is waiting anxiously to find out.

NEWSLETTER FOLDING AND EMAIL LIST

This happy group of volunteers gathered to prepare the newsletter mailing in November. Folding and inserting the pages saves money on the publication, and is a good excuse to get together and talk. To hear about volunteer opportunities like this, email wassenich@sanmarcos.net to sign up for SMRF's list of weekly email updates. The email message each week will alert members or interested supporters about meetings and is full of river news and volunteer opportunities. It is for those who need more than just a quarterly printed newsletter about river issues.

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