Texas State Meadows Center receives $500K for water contamination, climate change - KXAN.com
Texas State University Meadows Center gets $500K grant for water contamination
AUSTIN (KXAN) — On Tuesday, state and community leaders presented the Texas State University Meadows Center with a $500,000 check to help fight water contamination on the Texas coast.
The City of San Marcos applied for community project funding via a federal grant in 2023. This investment will give the research center resources to develop an iTool, which will immediately inform beachgoers on whether the water is safe to swim in.
“Coastal resilience is really important, because our world is changing. We’re growing in population, we’re seeing sea levels change, we’re seeing more wastewater going into water waste. That’s making our beaches less friendly for recreation,” Texas State University Executive Director of The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment Dr. Robert Mace told KXAN.
If the levels of fecal coliform are too high in the water, he said it can make people sick.
“It becomes a potential health issue,” Mace said.
According to Environment America, 90% of Texas beaches had at least one day of unsafe fecal contamination in 2022. That is higher than the national average of 55% that year.
Congressman Greg Casar spoke with KXAN Tuesday and joined community leaders to present the check.
- Texas State University’s Meadows Center receives $500,000 federal investment for research on climate change and water contamination. (KXAN Photo/Todd Bailey)
- Texas State University’s Meadows Center receives $500,000 federal investment for research on climate change and water contamination. (KXAN Photo/Todd Bailey)
- Texas State University’s Meadows Center receives $500,000 federal investment for research on climate change and water contamination. (KXAN Photo/Todd Bailey)
- Texas State University’s Meadows Center receives $500,000 federal investment for research on climate change and water contamination. (KXAN Photo/Todd Bailey)
- Texas State University’s Meadows Center receives $500,000 federal investment for research on climate change and water contamination. (KXAN Photo/Todd Bailey)
- Texas State University’s Meadows Center receives $500,000 federal investment for research on climate change and water contamination. (KXAN Photo/Todd Bailey)
“I grew up in Texas loving to go get in the water,” he said. “Unfortunately, in recent years, we’re seeing more and more beaches have to close, because they’re too dangerous for people to swim in them. We’re seeing more days where you could get sick swimming in that water. We need to get rid of that. We need to make sure that our Texas beaches are clean — both on the coast and in the water — and that’s why we’re supporting this project. Because we want everyday Texans to feel safe for them to go get in clean water and cool off.”
In addition to researching water contamination, the center is also looking at water resources across the state and looking at environmental aspects, Mace said.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”