There’s lots of great news for the rebuilding efforts in Bastrop County following the devastating Central Texas wildfires of last September. These wildfires are considered by many to be the worst in Texas’ history. Lives were lost, residents suffered and thousands of citizens saw their homes and property damaged or destroyed. The Austin Community Foundation (ACF) is one of the many organizations that has worked hard to provide key funding, a total of $1.4 million, to rebuild Bastrop. On May 21st, ACF announced a second round of grants totalling $830,000. The first set was made in December 2011.
American YouthWorks (AYW) is proud to be a recipient of a portion of these funds so that we can continue our role in restoring the economically important and ecologically unique natural environment in Bastrop County. One project that is currently underway is critical reseeding and mulching. The fires destroyed much of the vegetation on both public and private lands. This has created another problem, soil erosion, which could have long term consequences for Bastrop County. If the fertile topsoil is washed away, this will inhibit the rejuvenation of the plant community and impact the health of Bastrop’s waterways. May is the last chance to complete this reseeding project before the Central Texas summer makes it difficult to establish vegetation. We’re enlisting volunteers to help. Will you sign up? Upcoming volunteer days are May 26th and May 29th from 8:30am to 4:00pm. Please commit to at least two hours. Visit Volunteer Match to learn more.
We look forward to continuing our work to help restore Bastrop and are grateful to ACF for their support of our work in there.
