Big Thicket Reporter - 2006/02/08

NOTE (added Dec. 30, 2005):

The date of the January 2006 board meeting has been changed from the 14th to the 21st. The meeting location is Saratoga.

STATE PARKS CRISIS

The Texas Parks and Wildlife website brings grim news for park advocates. For years park budgets have had serious shortfalls that TPW has to address by cutting costs in several ways. The number of employees has been reduced and vacant positions held open. Money for repairs has been reduced and capital equipment completely eliminated. The Department is considering transfers of parks to other entities: Bright Leaf State Natural Area was transferred to the Austin Communities Foundation, and Matagorda Island State Park will now be operated by TPWD's Wildlife Division. Pending is a transfer of Lake Houston State Park to the City of Houston; a public hearing was held Dec. 5, and the proposal goes to the Commission during the Jan. 25-26 meeting.

Hurricane response commandeered state dollars, so TP&W's special request for $2 million bit the dust. On Sept. 1, over 100 positions were eliminated across the agency. Another 73 positions are targeted for January 31.

Still, TP&W says, "No state park will close" although operating hours are being reduced and other measures are being taken, including changes in trip schedules for the Texas State Railroad.

Check out the news item on the TPWD web site.

BIG THICKET DAY NOV. 19

If you did not attend the annual Big Thicket Day, you missed a good'un! Around 75 people showed up to honor our award recipients, to share a bit of land history with Darrell Shine, and to honor Lance Rosier.

Former congressman Charles Wilson and wife Barbara

Our Forever Friend and Sparring Partner, former Congressman Charles Wilson, was honored with the R. E. Jackson Conservation Award for his "most enduring legacy," Big Thicket National Preserve. Wilson was accompanied by his lovely wife Barbara and his mentor Arthur Temple (BTA life member). The Association presented to Wilson a Jack Gore Baygall painting of a hog-hunt by artist-naturalist Geraldine Watson.

Ann Roberts receives award

Janice Hudson gave her typical warm and modest response to encomiums delivered by longtime co-worker and volunteer Ann Roberts, and she received a bouquet from the man for whom her award was named: the Thomas Lubbert Superior Achievement Award.

Chuck Hunt, who received a Distinguished Service Award, responded with a look at the past and a vision of the future.

LANCE ROSIER MARKER

Rosier marker dedication

At 2:00 PM Nov. 19 folks gathered around the Texas Historical Commission marker commemo-rating the life and work of Lance Rosier, Saratoga naturalist, a.k.a. "Mr. Big Thicket." His niece Mrs. Carl (Flo Rosier) Stark and his nephew James Elmo Rosier unveiled the marker and introduced Rosier kinfolks who attended.

James Elmo Rosier and Flo Rosier Stark unveil marker

Commissioner Ken Pelt presided at the Hardin County Historical Commission event, and Dr. Pete Gunter presented a thoughtful and perceptive appraisal of Rosier's influence and achievements.

VISION FOR BIG THICKET, remarks by Charles Hunt

I am very honored to receive this award. Most, if not all, of the things listed as achievements for me are really the product of many people’s efforts, especially many of you BTA members, Glenna Vigil of our Regional Office, our very valuable partner Andy Jones of the Conservation Fund and my tolerant wife, Dana, who supports me and serves as a very valuable sounding board. Thank you for this recognition.

I’d like to do is use this occasion to talk about the Big Thicket—how we got here and where we need to go.

On September 19, 1870 a group of people were sitting around a campfire in an area that is now northwestern Wyoming discussing the future of the beautiful landscape that surrounded them. Many people believe that was the birthplace of the concept of National Parks for the idea of Yellowstone National Park was reportedly the result of that very important discussion. Ultimately, I suppose my agency can trace its heritage to that campfire as well although it wasn’t until 1916 that the National Park Service was created to manage the many National Parks and Monuments that had already been created.

Thirteen years after the creation of National Park Service, not far from where we are right now, something similar happened. About 4:30, on a cool crisp morning, surrounded by the smell of the woods and a campfire, R.E. Jackson had a vision… to create a permanent preserve that would forever protect the treasure he knew as the Big Thicket.

The vision that he began to articulate … in 1929 culminated in 1938 in a proposal for the creation of a 435,000-acre Big Thicket National Park. The Park Service agreed in a letter dated April 23, 1938 that a substantial portion of the Big Thicket should be preserved. Senator Morris Sheppard and Congressman Martin Dies expressed strong support for the proposal.

Unfortunately, a variety of circumstances, including World War II, the need for oil from the region and the establishment of the East Texas National Forests, presented challenges for Mr. Jackson’s vision. These challenges as well as many other factors resulted in a loss of momentum to the effort.

But like all good ideas, the vision of saving the Big Thicket would not die. The work of Jackson and his partners established a foundation that the next generation of advocates could build on. We lost R.E. Jackson in 1957, but something significant happened the following year. Mary Lasswell published I’ll Take Texas. This book recorded her adventures rambling all over the State of Texas in the early-1950s. One of her stops was the Big Thicket. There that she met Lance Rosier. Now Lance had kept up his quiet fight to save the Big Thicket even after the early momentum was lost, but his way was a quiet way, growing advocates for the Big Thicket one person at a time, one field trip at a time. Lasswell was very taken with Lance and gave him and his perspectives a lot of ink in her book. This was pivotal because I believe her book facilitated the “second wind” for the movement to save the Big Thicket.

On March 11, 1961, Pete Gunter wrote Sen. Yarborough a very compelling letter using Laswell’s book as a basis to urge the Senator to get involved. Sen. Yarborough, having grown up on the banks of the Neches River in Henderson County, responded in an encouraging fashion and, in the words of Pete Gunter, that “became a kind of rallying point around which a large and very diverse group of people could gather.” I am sure that there were many people still wanting to save the Big Thicket but Lasswell’s book, which triggered Pete’s letter and Sen. Yarborough positive response gave people hope and inspired collective action once again.

Here we are thirty-one years later. The Preserve has grown to about 90,000 acres. It includes much of Village Creek and some of the Canyonlands. We have also added critical lands near the Visitor Center. Hopefully, within a few years the implementation of the Addition Lands Act of 1993 will be complete so the Preserve will be in the neighborhood of about 98,000 acres. We have about 45 miles of trails, much of which is closed now thanks to Rita. We have a wonderful visitor center. A lot of progress has been made.

However, a couple of issues concern me and leads me to believe that it may be time for a “third wind” to occur. One issue is the fact that timber companies have sold much of the land surrounding the Preserve. Rather than being surrounded by stable, managed timber land, the Preserve is increasingly next to smaller and smaller tracts of land, some of which is being developed. Given the small units and spread out nature of the Preserve that could be bad news for some areas within the Preserve. We need to take a fresh look at the area surrounding the Big Thicket to look for conservation strategies that would protect critical adjoining areas to ensure that the Big Thicket remains biologically relevant for years to come.

Secondly …we haven’t fully achieved our potential… (We need) to have a greater impact on the economy of Southeast Texas. A greater economic impact would make it easier to argue for more conservation of the resource. I believe we need to explore additional amenities for the public, new ways to experience the Big Thicket and perhaps do a better job of exploring the cultural story the Big Thicket has to tell. Congressional testimony in the 1970’s forecast visitation of half a million by the 1990s. We currently estimate our visitation to be around 100,000 per year, but we really need to recalibrate how we count our visitors. Our visitation should increase significantly with the addition of lands along Village Creek this year. Regardless, we should do better. Our wonderful Visitor Center should get much more traffic than it receives.

The Big Thicket Association is planning to develop a strategic plan to layout a vision for the future. I am optimistic that the BTA can on a regional basis, well beyond the Preserve-focused perspective we would largely have, address some of these and many other issues pertinent to the Big Thicket region as a whole. We look forward to working with you on this plan.

From R.E. Jackson’s campfire, to Pete Gunter’s Letter to Sen. Yarborough to Congressman Wilson’s efforts, many of us have fought the good battle to save the Big Thicket. I am optimistic with the support and leadership that BTA offers, efforts to save the Big Thicket will continue well into the future.

Thank you for all your support and this great honor.

PRESERVE OVERVIEW, by Ann Roberts

The Preserve Staff gathered Thursday, Dec. 8th to share the holiday spirit, including caloric gastronomical treats. The party was preceded by a staff meeting, and followed by a raffle to benefit the Staff Association fund.

Lee LeJeune (A.O.) presented to Judy Allen the "TAKE PRIDE IN AMERICA" award for 3000 hours of volunteer service. Ann Roberts also received the "TAKE PRIDE IN AMERICA" award, the "President's Call to Service Award, and the "President's Volunteer Service Award" for over 4000 hours.

Field Research Station: The FRS welcomed new visitors in November-December. Among these were the Joint Venture Group of state and federal officials (two-day workshop considering bird populations), University of North Texas research team, LeTourneau University, and a hurricane crew from Nature Conservancy.

HURRICANE STUDY

Indiana State University has organized a North American Dendroecological Field Week in Big Thicket from Dec. 10-17. The study is co-chaired by Dr. James H. Speer (ISU) and Dr. Jim L. Jordan (Lamar's Earth and Space Sciences Dept.) Other participants include scientists from Rice University, and Hardin-Simmons University.

The research teams will collect cross sections from down trees to extract environmental history, succcessional dynamics and a record of past disturbances. A public presentation of results will be offered on Dec. 16 and is open to resource managers and the public.

EVENTS, 2006

• Feb. 25 - Black Creek, Rosier Unit. BTA and Houston Sierra join forces to explore Archer Fullingim's "Holy Ghost" Thicket. [ 936-262-8522]
• Jan. 14 -17, Canoe the Neches River from FM 1013 to Lakeview over MLK weekend with GT Sierra
• TRAIL WORK: BTA attempts to flag and to maintain several trails damaged by Hurricane Rita. Surveys and re-flagging work needed. [936-262-8522 phone / fax]
• Mar. 11, Old Wagon Road, Jack Gore Baygall Unit, 9:00-3:30 PM
• April 8-9 Bear Thicket Trail, Rosier Unit [Sat. 1:00-4:00 PM and Sun. 9:00-3:30]
• INVENTORY:
  • May 13 (tentative date) - Pyramid Magnolia, Leader: Paul Stone, Temple-Inland
• BTA BOARD MEETINGS [quarterly; second Saturday]
  • January 21
  • April 8
  • July 8
  • October 14, Big Thicket Day

CONSERVATION OUTLOOK, By Bruce Drury, Conservation Chair

Lamar's Environmental Learning and Resource Center

The Advisory Committee the Lamar University Environmental Learning and Resource Center met on November 10, having its originally scheduled October 6 meeting postponed because of Hurricane Rita. Justin Howard of LEAP Engineering presented a view of the ELRC facility planned for Collier’s Ferry Park and discussed the areas that would be immediately accessible from the Collier’s Ferry site.

The ELRC currently has partnerships established with Lamar University, LIT, Texas A&M SeaGrant, The City of Beaumont and the Big Thicket National Preserve, but these relationships are not overly active. The committee discussed the need to create active partnerships with a variety of local public and private entities that could assist the ELRC in fulfilling its mission to foster a unified approach to environmental education throughout the region. The director of the ELRC is Dr. Richard Bothel. More information is available on the ELRC web site www.lulearn.net/elrc.

Superintendents’ Conference

At the request of some BTA officers, I attended the 2005 Superintendents’ Conference of the Intermountain Region of the National Park Service, held in Tucson, Arizona November 15-18. The location at the Westward Look Resort was beautiful and the breakout sessions were extremely informative.

As an amateur among some 120 national park professionals, I was a bit overwhelmed, especially when the language in one session so baffled me that I thought they were speaking in “tongues”. It turned out they were only speaking in ACRONYMESE. In spite of the language problem, I did learn about new management programs like CORE OPS and new outreach programs such as “Teacher to Ranger to Teacher.”

The superintendents’ conference made me understand some of the problems confronting the staff of the Big Thicket National Preserve. The Intermountain Region is the largest of the NPS administrative regions, both in territory and number of facilities. It straddles the Rocky Mountains and from Canada to Mexico. BITH is a very small (at least in personnel and budget) compared to many of the national parks in the Intermountain Region. BITH also has a somewhat different function (preservation only) from most of the other facilities in the Intermountain Region. Add to those distinctions the distance from Denver and the differences in terrain and vegetation and you have an unusual fit for the Big Thicket National Preserve. Perhaps the best tactic for BITH and BTA would be to promote the unique character of the Preserve as a reason for more attention by the Intermountain Regions staff.

The superintendents’ conference provided this outsider an excellent perspective on management concerns in our national park system. - Bruce Drury

FERMATA / CONSERVATION FUND ECONOMIC STUDY

Andy Jones (The Conservation Fund) and Ted Eubanks (Fermata) began public outreach on economic development issues and opportunities along the Neches River during the week of December 5th-8th. They met with public and group officials in Tyler, Jacksonville, and Palestine on Monday December 5th then moved down river to Nacogdoches, Lufkin and Kountze.

Following the session at the Hardin County courthouse, Eubanks and Jones visited Rush Creek in Tyler County led by Chuck Hunt and D. W. Ivans.

BIG THICKET SCIENCE CONFERENCE PAPERS

Selected papers presented at the 2003 Big Thicket Science Conference were recently published as a supplement to the Texas Journal of Science, Vol. 56, November 2004. Copies have been mailed to participants, and a few have been returned as undeliverable as addressed. Extra copies are available and can be ordered from BTA at $10.00 [P.O. Box 198, Saratoga TX 77585]. They may also be available at the BTNP Visitor Center.

The next Conference is tentatively scheduled for March 2007. The Planning Committee chaired by Wendy Ledbetter (Nature Conservancy-Larsen Sanctuary) met November 2 at Lamar University and worked on committee assignments and logistics. The next meeting is scheduled for January 20, 2006, 2:00 PM at the Field Research Station.

CONSERVATION FRIENDS

The Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club celebrated its 40th anniversary at Canyon of the Eagles on Lake Buchanan. The dinner speaker was Joseph Fitzsimons, Chairman, Texas Parks & Wildlife Commission, who addressed funding problems in our state parks.

Texas Committee on Natural Resources (TCONR) held a fund-raiser in Houston on Dec. 1 hosted by Sissy Farenthold and Sarah Eckhardt. Those gathered paid warm tributes to the late Bob Eckhardt for his work in behalf of the environment.

Pete Gunter, Chair of TCONR's Big Thicket Task Force, was present with guitar. Pete is Chair-elect of TCONR in 2007.