GIVING TUESDAY! If we don’t fight for the Springs, who will?

Barton Creek defenders, photograph by Alan Pogue, 1991

Today, Giving Tuesday, help SOS continue to protect the places we love. For more than thirty years, Save Our Springs Alliance has served as a steadfast watchdog for Barton Springs and the Edwards Aquifer. We educate, we mobilize, and when necessary, we go to court to make sure the laws that voters passed are upheld.

The Springs can’t protect themselves. We're up against relentless pressure from rapid development, shortsighted water policies, and government shortcuts. Taking legal action to protect our water and our direct democracy is essential work for our drought-stricken region and many times, we are the only ones to do it.  If you’re able, will you make a gift today to help keep the Springs flowing and your rights protected?

MAKE MY GIFT

Part of what truly sets Save Our Springs apart —and what keeps Barton Springs flowing— is our stellar legal team. We are the only local nonprofit with full-time staff of attorneys dedicated to water quality. On a day built around radical generosity, it’s worth reflecting on what our community makes possible. Here are just a few examples of how SOS defends the aquifer and the public’s right to know:

We defend the SOS Ordinance. The Save Our Springs Ordinance was passed by Austin voters in 1992 to protect water quality in the Edwards Aquifer and Barton Springs. When developers or the City try to carve their way around it, SOS takes action in court. ➔ Just this year, SOS won a lawsuit invalidating an illegal contract entered into by the Austin City Council that would have allowed a development to bypass the SOS ordinance.
We demand transparency from government. Access to information and proper public engagement about the environmental impacts of proposed projects is critical to protecting water quality. SOS defends this right under the Texas Public Information Act (TPIA) and the Texas Open Meetings Act (TOMA). ➔This spring, our lawsuit forced CTRMA to release withheld documents about the environmental impacts of the MoPac South expansion.
We fight harmful highways. Highways increase impervious cover, runoff pollution, and threats to endangered species, including the Barton Springs and Austin Blind Salamanders.➔SOS successfully blocked illegal funding for the SH45 expansion in Hays County and is actively preparing to challenge the MoPac South expansion over the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone.
We keep wastewater out of streams and aquifers. Municipal wastewater contains nutrient pollution and emerging contaminants, like PFAS, that harm water quality and wildlife. SOS participates in contested case hearings and regulatory processes to prevent pollution. ➔This year, we helped force the withdrawal of a wastewater permit along Barton Creek and negotiated stronger treatment and monitoring standards for a proposed Pedernales River development.
We protect endangered species. We are lucky to share our home with many unique endangered species including the Golden-cheeked Warbler, the Barton Springs Salamander, and the Austin Blind Salamander. ➔Beyond the broader protective impact of our projects, this year SOS filed a petition to list the Lipan Salamander as endangered and advocated against removing protections for the Golden-cheeked Warbler.

Golden-cheeked warbler photo by Sergio Flores

Barton Springs photograph by Scott Bauer

GIVE BACK TO THE SPRINGS

These are just a few of the numerous cases and projects that require painstaking expertise from our legal team. Often, it means returning to court again and again, making sure the laws voters passed are honored and the Springs remain protected.

If Barton Springs has touched your life, if you swim here, hike nearby, or simply care about access to clean water and accountable government, your Giving Tuesday gift matters. 

Give today. Keep the Springs flowing. Keep Austin leaders accountable.
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For the love of clean water,
Save Our Springs Alliance Legal Team