SMRF formed in 1985 as a nonprofit corporation to protect the river. A small group of San Marcos citizens and riverside landowners, plus civic groups like the Heritage Association and Lions Club and others, established a small endowment fund to generate interest income which could be used for river protection. That endowment fund has been added to for over 20 years, and many people have given memorial donations in the name of family members or friends to SMRF's endowment fund.

Educational events and river cleanups were sponsored over the past two decades. SMRF contributed to parkland purchases along the river. SMRF bought many test kits so that water quality could be tested regularly in the river by the volunteer San Marcos River Rangers.

Gradually, the major discharges to the river were cleaned up as permit renewals came up, through SMRF members' hard work. SMRF paid for scientific studies and hired attorneys to help SMRF advocate for better water quality. Water quality in some parts of the river is better now than it has been in fifty years, according to some old timers in the area.

After many years of working on water quality, SMRF began working on preserving the flow of the river in the mid-1990's, and was successful in stopping a harmful plan to withdraw water from the upper San Marcos River without adequate environmental protections in place. The case was appealed all the way to the Texas Supreme Court, and SMRF won in 2004 after eight years of work on that case.

SMRF then moved forward in 2000 to apply for water to put into the state Water Trust, trying to make sure that an adequate amount is left to flow in the river for future generations. SMRF continues to work on that project, and will for many years to come, until we can be sure that Texas plans to allow rivers to flow in the future.

The SMRF newsletters on this website cover the last 15 years of SMRF history. See the SMRF Calendar for information on volunteer opportunities and events coming soon. For information on SMRF projects to protect the river, see the Projects category, which has more details on the ongoing Instream Flow Water Right application and many volunteer projects of SMRF. To contact us or join SMRF, click one of those choices. A form to send in via email or mail will pop up, and if you wish, you may use Paypal to pay dues or send a donation to help protect the river.

Thanks for visiting this website and learning more about SMRF. The group elects board members each January. The organization is run by nine volunteer board members who meet at least quarterly, and has one staff member. For their names, click on SMRF Board.