The Joint Rio Grande Basin Initiatives Conference was held May 17-20 in Alpine, Texas at the Sul Ross State University campus with 103 participants in attendance representing six universities, three institutes, six state and federal agencies, two states and two countries.

Texas Water Resources Institute (TWRI) announces the request for applications for Mills Scholarships. Funded by the W.G. Mills Endowment, the scholarships fund Texas A&M University graduate students with demonstrated interest in fields of study that have the potential to help Texas solve future water problems. The permanent endowment was established by Mills Cox, former chair of the Texas Water Development Board.

The fourth Texas Watershed Planning Short Course was held May 10-14 at the Mayan Dude Ranch in Bandera, with more than 35 water professionals from Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma attending. The course is sponsored by the Texas Water Resources Institute and funded by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The Texas Water Resources Institute (TWRI) is participating in a group that is creating the Texas Water Digital Library (TWDL) that will be a centralized, online location for the research and works of university water resources entities throughout Texas.

Civil engineers and floodplain managers can learn about a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers software program that assists in floodplain analysis at a Texas Water Resources Institute workshop in August in Dallas.

The TWRI workshop on August 24-26 at the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Urban Solutions Center will focus on the fundamental concepts of open-channel hydraulics and control sections and include hands-on applications of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Hydrologic Engineering Center’s HEC-RAS and HEC-GeoRAS software packages.

The Plum Creek Watershed Partnership, Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority and Texas AgriLife Extension Service were recently awarded a 2010 Envision Central Texas Community Stewardship Award for their public awareness program, "Taking Charge of Water Quality in the Plum Creek Watershed."

In the second year of a two-year study of 10 "smart" irrigation controllers, Texas AgriLife Extension Service experts found some performed well, some needed work and others were still not so smart at all.

The Texas AgriLife Extension Service is offering three opportunities for small-acreage landholders to participate in an online course on rainwater collection for livestock and wildlife.

The Texas Invasives website has been completely redesign, featuring new interactive features enabling people to report sightings and take action to stop the spread of invasive plants and animals that threaten the state’s economy, environment and quality of life.

Evaluation of Electrostatic Particle Ionization and BioCurtain Technologies to Reduce Dust, Odor and Pollutants from Broiler Houses, Plugging Abandoned Water Wells, Desalination Methods for Producing Drinking Water, and upcoming training course information.