Texas A&M AgriLife agencies and institutes, including the Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute and the Texas Water Resources Institute, are partnering with organizations statewide to celebrate Soil and Water Stewardship Week, April 26 through May 3.
The Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board, TSSWCB, and the Association of Texas Soil and Water Conservation Districts are leading the campaign with the focus, “Soil. Where it All Begins,” highlighting the importance of voluntary land stewardship in Texas.
Healthy soil supports everything Texans depend on
From food to clothes and the foundation of homes and offices to working lands and city parks, soil plays a critical role in sustaining both natural resources and local economies.
Healthy soil helps safeguard water resources, agricultural productivity and wildlife habitats by performing the following essential functions every day:
- Producing food and fiber by anchoring roots and supplying nutrients that crops and pastures need to grow.
- Managing and protecting water by absorbing rainfall and irrigation, reducing runoff and erosion, filtering pollutants and helping recharge aquifers.
- Cycling and storing nutrients and carbon, supporting soil biology and keeping ecosystems productive and balanced.
- Building resilience by reducing the impacts of drought, flooding and extreme weather.
- Providing physical stability by supporting plant roots, human infrastructure and cultural and archaeological resources.
Healthy soils help Texas thrive
Texas soils are as diverse as the landscapes they support. Prairies, forests, croplands, wetlands and urban spaces all rely on soil health to function properly. When soil is healthy, land is productive and communities are stronger, TSSWCB experts said.
TSSWCB and Soil and Water Conservation Districts across Texas have worked since 1939 to encourage wise and productive use of natural resources.
Other partnering organizations in the campaign include: Council for Healthy Food Systems, Ducks Unlimited, Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance, Holistic Management International, Lower Colorado River Authority – Creekside Conservation Program, Plains Cotton Growers, Texan By Nature, Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, Texas Agriculture Cooperative Council, Texas Association of Dairyman, Texas Conservation Association for Water and Soil, Texas Corn Producers, Texas FFA Association, Texas Forestry Association, Texas Grazing Lands Coalition, Texas Nature Conservancy, Texas Poultry Federation, Texas Watershed Stewards, Texas Wheat Producers Board, Texas Wildlife Association, U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service and Water Grows.
