May 17 Thursday - Bexar Audubon Meeting & Program

Is 'fracking' fracturing one of the last great natural habitats in America?

Effects of the Eagle Ford Shale on Wildlife Habitat and how to mitigate and restore the greatest wildlife habitat impact of our generation Presentation by Forrest Smith, Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Institute in Kingsville Thursday May 17 6:30pm at TriPoint (corner of 281 & St. Marys). click for map!

The Eagle Ford Shale (EFS) is a globally significant oil and gas play spanning central south Texas. While the EFS is projected to economically impact the Texas economy and mineral owners for decades to come, and is a significant contributor to domestic oil and gas needs, it will significantly impact what scientists have named "The Last Great Habitat" for wildlife—the Rio Grande Plains of South Texas. Concerns about the EFS range from habitat fragmentation and loss, to soil erosion, to proliferation of exotic plants. With development occurring at a staggering pace, habitat restoration and conservation actions are just now being identified and acted on at the landscape scale. Forrest will present suggestions for conservation-minded gas and oil operations which lessen the impacts on wildlife and their habitats, with particular emphasis on minimizing fragmentation, and conservation and restoration of native plants.

Forrest S. Smith is the Director of the South Texas Natives and Texas Native Seeds Projects of the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. South Texas Natives has collaborated with over 100 private ranches to collect native seed and develop native seed sources, as well as implement over 40 on-the-ground restoration projects. In fall 2010 Forrest assumed leadership of a multi-region initiative called Texas Native Seeds, modeled after South Texas Natives, that will serve restoration and native plant material needs in south, central, and west Texas. Forrest serves on the Board of Directors of a conservation initiative called Taking Care of Texas led by Former First Lady Laura Bush. He was named the Outstanding Young Professional in Texas by the Texas Section Society for Range Management in 2011. Forrest and his wife Tricia live in Kingsville, Texas, and have 3 young children.