The Sabine River Authority of Texas (SRA-TX) supports education and public outreach as critical components of conservation. The various programs highlighted here are designed to inform and to solicit input from the public. We believe that partnering with the residents of the Sabine Basin encourages good stewardship that benefits wildlife and water quality.
SRA-TX has provided Major Rivers Water Education Program materials free of charge to schools in the Sabine Basin since 2003. Major Rivers is operated by the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) as a fun way to teach 4th grade students about water conservation, the water cycle, pollution, and environmental responsibility. For more information about the Major Rivers Program see:
The Texas Stream Team is a long-term collaboration of The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment at Texas State University, TCEQ, and EPA in an on-going statewide program of citizen water quality monitoring and water quality education and outreach. The Texas Stream Team coordinates a network of partner organizations and citizen scientists to increase the public's knowledge of water quality and nonpoint source pollution across the state. The SRA-TX has supported and participated in the Texas Stream Team Volunteer Monitoring Program since it began as Texas Watch in 1993. SRA-TX personnel support local volunteer stream monitors with training, supplies, and equipment. This program encourages public involvement in monitoring water quality in the Sabine Basin and throughout Texas.
Alligator Snapping Turtles are a species of concern to wildlife biologists and are listed as threatened by the TPWD. In 2020 the SRA-TX began a public information campaign to raise awareness that these turtles are protected by Texas state law . Signs were placed at boat ramps throughout the Sabine Basin giving the public information and requesting that the public report sightings along with photos, GPS points, and measurements to SRA-TX for inclusion in the Sabine Basin Alligator Snapping Turtle database. This data will be shared with researchers to aid in understanding the distribution and abundance of these amazing turtles.
SRA-TX has partnered with TPWD to get the word out to Texas boaters to clean, drain, and dry their boats before transporting them from one water body to another. This campaign is an effort to stop the spread of invasive species such as zebra mussels, giant salvinia, and water hyacinth in Texas using advertising and signs to educate boaters. SRA-TX has provided funding for this campaign since 2011.
SRA-TX’s Lake Fork and Lake Tawakoni Divisions support the annual Rains County Eagle Fest, providing guides and access to eagle habitat on SRA-TX property.
Additional public outreach includes providing presentations at area schools, civic groups, and environmental events as well as tours of SRA-TX facilities. Examples include Sabine County Ag Day, March for Parks, information booths at Shangri-La Botanical Garden’s Eco-Fest in Orange, Career Day at Stephen F. Austin State University, and the City of Longview’s East Texas Outdoor Expo.