The City’s Environmental Commission passed a motion on Sept. 18 recommending the city council to partner with the Great Springs Project, a non-profit organization working to create a greenway of protected lands between Austin and San Antonio.

The Great Springs Project aims to build a hike and bike trail spanning over 100 miles and connecting the four great springs of Central Texas, from the Alamo to the Capital. The second part of its mission is to conserve an additional 50,000 acres of the “iconic Texas Hill Country” over the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone, said Emma Lindrose-Siegel, the chief development officer for the project. Completion is expected by 2036. 

“Our vision at the Great Springs Project is to really serve as a connector and an amplifier of (city projects) and engage with those communities and with those local governments to learn more about their priorities and what they need to make those shared goals happen, whether that’s planning or funding or collaboration,” Lindrose-Siegel said. “To have the Environmental Commission approve that recommendation is such a wonderful step in our tenure as an organization to build consensus and increase collaboration.” 

Lindrose-Siegel said the organization must work with local governments as the project’s support depends on the needs of each region and location, including promoting cyclist and pedestrian-friendly streets in San Antonio and building a new public park in Schertz, a town part of the San Antonio metropolitan area. 

In Austin, the program focuses on three main missions, including constructing an additional trail in southeast Travis County in collaboration with the Travis County Parks Foundation advocating for the Hill Country Headwaters Conservation Initiative to permanently protect sensitive natural resources and secure funding for a new South Austin trail.

Joanna Wolaver, executive director of the Travis County Parks Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting the county park system, said with the help of the Great Springs Project, the foundation can build a 70-mile trail system along Dillon Creek, Onion Creek, Wilbarger Creek and the Colorado River in eastern Travis County. She said the foundation and project recently co-submitted an application to the Environmental Protection Agency with other nonprofit partners to fund projects along the Onion Creek Greenway. 

“I think that access to well-maintained natural areas and parks is just critical to the health of our communities,” Wolaver said. “The more we can bring those spaces to our different communities, the better off we all are.”

Dean Hendrickson, a curator of ichthyology at UT’s Biodiversity Center, said news of the project thrilled him because it draws attention to the Edwards Aquifer, helping him study two species of blind catfishes only found in the aquifer. He said the health of the species can indicate the health of the water Texans consume. 

“(The project) would call attention to the aquifer and the biodiversity,” Hendrickson said. “It’s amazing to me how few people know about all that amazing biodiversity just straight down below them. The more I talk to people in San Antonio, there are precious few that really are aware about what’s down there.” 

Editor’s note: This story has been updated for accuracy.