Trinity River National Wilfdlife Refuge Receives 2008 QVM™ Project Habitat™ Award for Responsible Vegetation Management
LIBERTY, TX, February 18, 2009 – Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge, based in Liberty, Texas, has been named as a winner in the 2008 QVM Project Habitat Awards, announced at the third annual awards banquet held recently in Austin, Texas.
The QVM Project Habitat Awards is an annual awards program designed to honor quality vegetation management programs across the U.S. It rewards vegetation management professionals that uphold high standards of vegetation management and follow the QVM Principles and Practices.
“Trinity River stands out as a leader in responsible environmental stewardship because of their commitment to the highest industry principles and practices,” said Kim Dorman, Communications Specialist for BASF Professional Vegetation Management. “The commitment they have made helps sustain healthy vegetation and wildlife ecosystems.”
A winner in the Aquatic category, Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge has to deal with both native and non-native aquatic weeds including alligator weed, floating pennywort, frogbit and water hyacinth in their lakes and ponds. Controlling these weeds was a challenge due to the desirable cypress trees dotting the southeast Texas refuge. QVM Certified Applicator Chem-Air worked with BASF to implement an aerial herbicide application selectively targeting the troublesome weeds with little to no damage to the cypress trees. Chem-Air’s first application achieved more than 80 percent control , dramatically improving fish and wildlife habitat, while also providing the public better access to the water.
“We could not have accomplished this level of success without BASF expertise,” said Stuart Marcus, Refuge Manager. “Birds are already starting to use the areas cleared of exotic vegetation.”
Hurricane Ike damage
Hello All,
Trinity River Refuge was fortunate compared to some of what I saw from others. All of our structures are fine except fences. Trees fell everywhere but that is mother nature doing her thing. We had folks fishing the next day at Champion Lake but they were in for a surprise. The lake, along with Pickett’s Bayou had a major fish kill as salt water turned it to “black water” which is fairly unusual that far inland. Good news is our Salvinia, alligator weed, coontail, and some hyacinth will now be gone. We are open to hunting and fishing since our fire team crews and refuge staff were able to open those specific tracts. Cleanup of trails and fences will continue for some time, but we can only use specialized folks with chainsaws and heavy equipment. Thanks for the offer to help.
Stuart Marcus
Refuge Manager
Trinity River Refuge
Trinity River Refuge Free Fishing Day Results
Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge along with the Friends of Trinity River Refuge hosted a “Free Family Fishing Day” on June 7th at the Champion Lake Public Use Area. Over 115 people fished that morning with the majority of young fishermen coming from Scout Troop 64 out of Dayton. Throughout the morning about 70 children joined some 45 adults in the state sponsored free fishing day. Everyone who fished caught dozens of perch with some bass. All were released. For many of the kids, this was their first time fishing. Eight volunteers from the Friends of Trinity River Refuge assisted the kids in casting and baiting hooks. The Scout Troop even picked up five bags of trash before they started fishing. It was a fun morning for all involved.
Photo by Shannon Thompkins of The Houston Chronicle.
Logo and collector’s patch
Friends of Trinity River Refuge was recently featured in a local broadcast on radio station KSHN in Liberty, Texas. KSHN reported on our Swallow-tailed Kite logo and Collector’s Patch. Click on the link below to listen to the report.
KSHN – New Logo and Collectors Patch – MP3 Format 701kb
FOTRR Website 2.0
In April 2002, Friends of Trinity River Refuge opened its first website on the world wide web. Six years and thousands of visitors later, we are pleased to release our newly redesigned website.
Taking advantage of the latest tools in website development technology, our retooled site includes many new features. An improved photo gallery, easier navigation, expanded content to include audio and video, and the latest news about happenings within our organization and the Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge are just a few of the improvements. In addition, we can now be accessed via one of two domain names: www.friendsoftrinityriverrefuge.com or www.fotrr.com .
Please take a moment to peruse our site and learn more about our organization and the refuge.
Hours of commitment
Liberty resident Paul Newton shows off the pin he received for giving 1,000 hours of volunteer work for the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Newton is a member of the Friends of the Trinity River Refuge and received his pin Tuesday during the dedication ceremony for a restoration project on the refuge.
Photo: Amy Fowler
Reprinted from The Liberty Vindicator – January 29, 2008
Also, listen to the full news report from Liberty’s KSHN-FM Evening Report:
KSHN – Some go the extra mile to help others – MP3 Format 1.73mb
158 acres of trees at Trinity River NWR will absorb 63k tons of carbon dioxide
For Release: Jan. 29, 2008
Contacts: Jose Viramontes, (505) 550-3113
Dell, Travelocity and Universal lend critical support to restore Texas native forests
Partnership with The Conservation Fund and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Will Help Fight Climate Change, Create New Wildlife Habitat at Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge
Representatives from Dell and Travelocity joined The Conservation Fund, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and Environmental Synergy, Inc. (ESI) today to announce the restoration of 158 acres of forestland that will address climate change, restore sensitive wildlife habitat and enhance public recreation areas at Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) in East Texas. Private support for the initiative was made possible via a mix of customer and corporate donations from Dell, Travelocity, Universal Studios, NBC Universal and individual donors to The Conservation Funds Go ZeroSM program. Over their lifetime, the newly planted bald cypress, oak and pecan trees will trap more than 63,000 tons of carbon dioxide a potent greenhouse gas.
The Conservation Fund and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service add 1,600 acres to Trinity River Wildlife Refuge in East Texas
Addition protects diverse wetlands and wildlife habitat
Austin, TX (December 12, 2007) – The Conservation Fund and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) announced today the protection of 1,600 acres of bottomland hardwood forest in East Texas, giving birds migrating from Central and South America to Canada more room to rest their wings. The recently acquired lands will be added to the Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge. Funds from the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission, supported by revenue collected from Federal Duck Stamp sales, import duties collected on arms and ammunition, right-of-way payments to the refuge system and receipts from national wildlife refuge entry fees also helped make this acquisition possible.