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Save Our Springs Alliance
Save Our Springs Alliance (SOS), originally called the Save Our Springs Legal Defense Fund, was a nonprofit corporation created to protect the citizen-drafted SOS Ordinance of 1992 to conserve Barton Springs in Austin, Texas. The ordinance was written by citizens in reaction to the city's "Composite Ordinance," which citizens regarded as insufficient to save Barton Springs. History In 1990 Freeport-McMoRan, a mining company, threatened to develop of land it owned along Barton Creek. When it came time for City Council to approve the development, though, an all-night meeting ensued wherein citizens decried the company's actions and professed their love of Barton Springs, what many refer to as the "Soul of the City." Today, SOS works with groups in the larger Edwards Region with a collective goal of conserving the Greater Edwards Aquifer Ecosystem, which is now chartered in the "Edwards Aquifer Protection Plan." The Edwards Aquifer is the source of water to over 4 million peop ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barton Springs
Barton Springs is a set of four natural water springs located at Barton Creek on the grounds of Zilker Park in Austin, Texas, resulting from water flowing through the Edwards Aquifer. The largest spring, Main Barton Spring (also known as Parthenia, "the mother spring"), supplies water to Barton Springs Pool, a popular recreational destination in Austin. The smaller springs are located nearby, two with man-made structures built to contain and direct their flow. The springs are the only known habitat of the Barton Springs Salamander, an endangered species. The Barton Creek National Archeological and Historic District was formed in 1985. Geology Barton Springs is the main discharge point for the Barton Springs segment of the Edwards Aquifer of Texas, a well known karst aquifer. Geologically, the aquifer is composed of limestone from the Cretaceous period, about 100 million years old. Fractures, fissures, conduits, and caves have developed in this limestone. Both physical fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Austin, Texas
Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the Metropolitan statistical area, 26th-largest metropolitan area in the United States, the List of United States cities by population, 13th-most populous city in the United States, the List of cities in Texas by population, fifth-most populous city in the state after Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, and Fort Worth, and the second-most populous state capital city after Phoenix, Arizona. It has been one of the fastest growing large cities in the United States since 2010. Downtown Austin and Downtown San Antonio are approximately apart, and both fall along the Interstate 35 in Texas, I-35 corridor. This combined metropolitan region of San Antonio–Austin met ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Freeport-McMoRan
Freeport-McMoRan Inc., often called Freeport, is an American mining company based in the Freeport-McMoRan Center, in Phoenix, Arizona. The company is the world's largest producer of molybdenum, a major copper producer and operates the world's largest gold mine, the Grasberg mine in Papua, Indonesia. History Freeport Sulphur Company was founded July 12, 1912, by the eldest son of Svante Magnus "E.M." Swenson, banker Eric Pierson Swenson, with a group of investors, to develop sulfur mining at Bryan Mound salt dome, along the US Gulf Coast.''Poor's'' ''Poor's Government and Municipal Supplement'', Poor's Publishing Company, 1922, p. 760. Freeport, Texas was also established in Nov. 1912 to house workers, and serve as a port for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edwards Aquifer
The Edwards Aquifer is one of the most prolific artesian aquifers in the world. Located on the eastern edge of the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas, it is the source of drinking water for two million people, and is the primary water supply for agriculture and industry in the aquifer's region. Additionally, the Edwards Aquifer feeds the Comal River, Comal and San Marcos Springs, provides springflow for recreational and downstream uses in the Nueces River, Nueces, San Antonio River, San Antonio, Guadalupe River (Texas), Guadalupe, and San Marcos River, San Marcos river basins, and is home to several unique and endangered species. Basin characteristics Geography Located in South Central Texas, the Edwards Aquifer encompasses an area of approximately that extends into parts of 11 counties. The aquifer's boundaries begin at the groundwater divide in Kinney County, East of Brackettville, and extend Eastward through the San Antonio area and then Northeast where the aquif ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barton Creek
Barton Creek is a tributary that feeds the Colorado River as it flows through the Texas Hill Country. The creek passes through some of the more scenic areas in Greater Austin, surrounded in many parts by a greenbelt of protected lands that serves as a habitat for many indigenous species of flora and fauna. The creek passes through Barton Creek Greenbelt and is fed by Barton Springs. Course The creek begins in northern Hays County and flows east through Austin, draining into the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone in southwest Austin. The stream then reemerges at Barton Springs and proceeds toward Lady Bird Lake (formerly Town Lake), where it joins with the Colorado River. The main entrance to Airmen's Cave is in the banks of Barton Creek. History During the 17th and 18th centuries, Barton Creek is believed to have hosted Tonkawa and Comanche Indian camps. The creek is named after William Barton, who built a house near Barton Springs in 1837. As Austin grew the springs became ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Onion Creek (Texas)
Onion Creek is a small tributary stream of the Colorado River in Texas. It begins southeast of Johnson City, Blanco County, Texas, and flows approximately eastward into the Colorado River, northwest of Garfield in Travis County, Texas. While areas surrounding the creek's origin in Blanco County are primarily rural, areas closer to its mouth in Travis County run through Austin and are urban and industrial. Passing near Dripping Springs, Driftwood, and Onion Creek, Onion Creek is the source of the waterfalls in McKinney Falls State Park. Onion Creek's watershed spans an area of . Recreation Austin Parks and Recreation, Travis County and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department manage areas along Onion Creek for public use. These include Onion Creek Metropolitan Park, Onion Creek Greenbelt, Onion Creek Soccer Complex, McKinney Falls State Park, Richard Moya Park, Barkley Meadows Park and Southeast Metropolitan Park. 2013 Flood On October 31, 2013 Onion Creek experienced historic l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eutrophication
Eutrophication is a general term describing a process in which nutrients accumulate in a body of water, resulting in an increased growth of organisms that may deplete the oxygen in the water; ie. the process of too many plants growing on the surface of a river, lake, etc., often because chemicals that are used to help crops grow have been carried there by rain. Eutrophication may occur naturally or as a result of human actions. Manmade, or cultural, eutrophication occurs when sewage, Industrial wastewater treatment, industrial wastewater, fertilizer runoff, and other nutrient sources are released into the environment. Such nutrient pollution usually causes algal blooms and bacterial growth, resulting in the depletion of dissolved oxygen in water and causing substantial environmental degradation. Many policies have been introduced to combat eutrophication, including the United Nations Development Program (UNDP)'s sustainability development goals. Approaches for prevention and re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Algae
Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular microalgae, such as cyanobacteria, ''Chlorella'', and diatoms, to multicellular macroalgae such as kelp or brown algae which may grow up to in length. Most algae are aquatic organisms and lack many of the distinct cell and tissue types, such as stomata, xylem, and phloem that are found in embryophyte, land plants. The largest and most complex marine algae are called seaweeds. In contrast, the most complex freshwater forms are the Charophyta, a Division (taxonomy), division of green algae which includes, for example, ''Spirogyra'' and stoneworts. Algae that are carried passively by water are plankton, specifically phytoplankton. Algae constitute a Polyphyly, polyphyletic group because they do not include a common ancestor, and although Eu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA; 16 U.S.C. § 1531 et seq.) is the primary law in the United States for protecting and conserving imperiled species. Designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of economic growth and development untempered by adequate concern and conservation", the ESA was signed into law by President Presidency of Richard Nixon#Environmental policy, Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973. The Supreme Court of the United States described it as "the most comprehensive legislation for the preservation of endangered species enacted by any nation"."Tennessee Valley Authority v. Hill" 437 U.S. 153 (1978) Retrieved 24 November 2015. The purposes of the ESA are two-fold: to prevent extinction and to recover species to the point wher ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States Secretary Of The Interior
The United States secretary of the interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. The secretary and the Department of the Interior are responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land along with natural resources, leading such agencies as the Bureau of Land Management, the United States Geological Survey, the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the National Park Service. The secretary also serves on and appoints the private citizens on the National Park Foundation Board. The secretary is a member of the United States Cabinet and reports to the president of the United States. The function of the U.S. Department of the Interior is different from that of the interior minister designated in many other countries. As the policies and activities of the Department of the Interior and many of its agencies have a substantial impact in the Western United States, the secretary of the interior has typically come from a western state; only one secretary sin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barton Springs Salamander
The Barton Springs salamander (''Eurycea sosorum'') is an endangered lungless salamander. It is endemic to Texas, United States. It was first found in Barton Springs in Austin, but is now also known from other localities in the nearby Travis and Hays Counties. Barton Springs is located within Zilker Park which is situated in the Edwards Aquifer in Austin, Texas. Eliza Springs, located within Barton Springs, has one of the largest populations of Barton Springs salamanders. Habitat The Barton Springs salamander prefers clear water and are typically found near openings of springs. These salamanders can also be found under rocks or gravel, within aquatic vegetation, and algae. Barton Springs salamanders can live in water depths ranging from . The springs in which these salamanders inhabit flow year-round and retain a constant temperature of around . Description Barton Springs salamanders grow to approximately in total length and have mottled coloration varying from darkish p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
US Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over State court (United States), state court cases that turn on questions of Constitution of the United States, U.S. constitutional or Law of the United States, federal law. It also has Original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of the United States, original jurisdiction over a narrow range of cases, specifically "all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party." In 1803, the Court asserted itself the power of Judicial review in the United States, judicial review, the ability to invalidate a statute for violating a provision of the Constitution via the landmark case ''Marbury v. Madison''. It is also able to strike down presidential directives for violating either the Constitution or s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
