| "Both the public and the communities on the trail are seeing that these habitats have great value." | |
| Linda Campbell, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department |
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What if there were a way to provide economic development opportunities for coastal communities that at the same time developed public support for environmental conservation and resource management agencies? The Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail, managers say, has accomplished these seemingly conflicting objectives.
The first of its kind in the country, the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail is a more than 700-mile driving trail that connects 308 wildlife viewing sites along the entire Texas coast. Communities, private citizens, land managers, conservation groups, businesses, and government agencies all worked together to create the trail.
"Both the public and the communities on the trail are seeing that these habitats have great value," says Linda Campbell, nature tourism coordinator with the Wildlife Diversity Program of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. "The economic development that comes with tourism gives the areas greater value, and provides more of an incentive to conserve them. One of the major reasons we're in this is for the conservation message."
The idea for the $1.5 million trail came out of a state initiative to boost nature tourism in Texas. According to the 1996 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, wildlife watching was already big business in the state, contributing $1.2 billion to the Texas economy. But, Campbell says, there were "little-known jewels," particularly in rural areas, that the public had no way of knowing about. "We were already getting a lot of birders, but we needed a platform to help them find and enjoy these sites."
To fund the trail, Parks and Wildlife applied for and received two Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) grants. The Texas Department of Transportation provided the 20 percent match the federal grants required. The state contracted with a private company to coordinate the project, which was completed in three sections over five years.
"The first section was the most difficult because nobody had done it before," says Ted Lee Eubanks, president of the contracting company, Fermata Inc. "By the time we finished the last section, we had an established protocol."
Eubanks says they began by holding a series of public meetings, explaining the purpose of the trail and soliciting site nominations. Eubanks and his staff then visited every site, and organized the appropriate sites into loops that a visitor could complete in a weekend. They established signage with a trail logo for each site and along highways. Illustrated maps were created for each section that provide numbered descriptions of the sites, directions to each location, the best season to visit, examples of wildlife that might be seen, and contacts for additional information. Select sites also were enhanced with such things as boardwalks and observation platforms.
In the three years since the first section of the trail was completed, Parks and Wildlife has distributed nearly 200,000 maps. Responses from a survey of trail users have "shown a high level of public support," Campbell says.
"This is a way to get people outdoors, first of all," Campbell says. "If you can get them to these places, then you help them understand the importance of conserving habitat and appreciating wildlife. You're also building public support for conservation, which is so important for public agencies. In addition, you're providing economic development for these communities. It's accomplished the three things we felt were most important."
For more information about the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail, point your browser to either www.tpwd.state.tx.us or http://www.fermatainc.com/ttt_trail.html. You may also contact Linda Campbell at (512) 389-4396 or linda.campbell@tpwd.state.tx.us.
