The Houston-Galveston Area Council Regional Conservation Initiative and two Livable Centers projects were selected for recognition in the Texas Chapter of the American Planning Association’s (APA) 2022 Planning Awards program.

The H-GAC Regional Conservation Initiative earned Silver recognition in the Environmental Planning category. This award honors efforts to create more sustainable and greener communities that reduce the impact of development on the natural environment and improve environmental quality. The project was also recognized in the inaugural APA Texas Chapter Houston Section 2022 Planning Awards.

The H-GAC East Aldine Livable Centers study earned Silver recognition in the Best Practice category. This award is for a specific planning tool, practice, program, project, or process. This category emphasizes results and demonstrates how innovative and state-of-the-art planning methods and practices help to create communities of lasting value.

The H-GAC Old Seabrook Livable Centers study earned Silver recognition in the Urban Design category. This award honors efforts to create a sense of place, whether a street, public space, neighborhood, or campus effort.

November 15 is Texas Recycles Day. To supplement community or organizations' social media activities, H-GAC provides monthly content for use on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts. Communities can visit the H-GAC Solid Waste Management Educational Tools webpage to download any of the images and captions and post on their own social media. The images and captions are also available to share from H-GAC Recycling Facebook page. 

For more information about Texas Recycles Day, including shareable social media content, a press releases template, and a proclamation template, visit the State of Texas Alliance for Recycling Texas Recycles Day webpage. 

H-GAC Seeks Feedback, Public Comment on 2018 Hurricane Harvey Disaster Recovery Funds Reallocation

H-GAC will host a public planning meeting on Zoom to provide more information on the proposed reallocation amendment, answer any questions, and accept feedback. The meeting will be from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, November 9. Registration is required to attend this meeting.

H-GAC will also hold a public hearing from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, December 6. The hearing will be at 3555 Timmons Lane, Houston, and on Zoom. Registration is requested to attend the hearing in person, and registration is required to attend the hearing online.

For more information, including additional ways to provide public comment, visit www.h-gac.com/go/cdbg. 

Natural Resources Advisory Committee – November 3 (Hybrid)

H-GAC's Natural Resources Advisory Committee will meet from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Thursday, November 3.

The meeting will be at H-GAC, Second Floor Conference Rooms, and on Zoom. Registration is required to attend online and requested to attend in person.

Brian Koch, Regional Watershed Coordinator with the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board, will present on recommended practices for protecting and conserving natural resources, especially water resources.

For more information, contact Rachel Windham.

Trash Free Texas Single-Use Plastic Reduction Workgroup Meeting – November 7 (Online)

The Trash Free Texas teams from H-GAC and the North Central Texas Council of Governments invites cities, restaurants, third-party delivery providers, chambers of commerce, and restaurant patrons to participate in the next meeting of the Trash Free Texas Single-Use Plastic Reduction Workgroup from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. Monday, November 7, on Teams.

The purpose of this meeting is to hear feedback on two draft toolkits—one for cities and one for restaurants—that include resources, templates, and strategies for voluntarily reducing the use of single-use plastics in restaurants. About 10 to 14 days prior to the meeting, the Trash Free Texas project team will email the draft toolkits to registrants for review.

Register to attend the meeting and receive meeting login information and review copies of the toolkits.

Interested participants can also receive copies of the toolkits for review without planning to attend the meeting.

Houston GIS Day – November 16 (In-Person)

The 2022 Houston Area GIS Day is Wednesday, November 16, at the University of Houston – Clear Lake campus, 2700 Bay Area Blvd, Bayou Building, Houston. The Houston Area GIS Day is a free, one-day celebration of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for local GIS professionals, universities, high school students, and teachers.

More event information is available on the 2022 Houston Area GIS Day website.

Parks and Natural Areas Roundtable Field Trip – November 17 (In-Person)

Join us for H-GAC's Parks and Natural Areas Roundtable Field Trip at 1:30 p m. Thursday, November 17. We will meet at Francesca’s Garden in Rick Rice Park, 700 Mason Creek Trail, Katy, to learn more about this award-winning park. 

Registration is requested. 

For more information, contact Andrea Tantillo.

Bacteria Implementation Group (BIG) Fall Meeting – November 29 (Hybrid)

The Bacteria Implementation Group (BIG) Fall meeting will be from 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesday, November 29.

The meeting will be at H-GAC, Second Floor Conference Rooms, and on Zoom. Registration is required to attend online and requested to attend in person.

For more information, contact Steven Johnston.

Fall Planning Workshop – December 2 (Online)

Save the Date for H-GAC's annual Fall Planning Workshop from 9 to noon, Friday, December 2.

The event will be online, and registration is required.

The topic will be Accommodating Your Community: ADA Requirements for Local Governments. Experts will discuss Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) rules, policies, and best practices for making built environments and engagement accessible for all. The keynote speaker will be Kori Allen, ADA & Capital Programs Coordinator at City of Coppell and member of the Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities. 

For more information, contact Cheryl Mergo.

Chocolate Bay Stakeholder Meeting – December 13 (Hybrid)

H-GAC invites residents, local governments, businesses, and non-profits within the watersheds that make up Chocolate Bay—Chocolate Bayou, Mustang Bayou, and Halls Bayou—to attend a stakeholder meeting from 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesday, December 13. 

The meeting will be at the Alvin Public Library, 105 South Gordon, Alvin, and on Zoom. Registration is required to attend online. 

The purpose of the meeting is to discuss water quality issues affecting communities in the Chocolate Bay watershed, including Algoa, Arcola, Alvin, Fresno, Hillcrest, Iowa Colony, Liverpool, Manvel, Missouri City, Pearland, and Santa Fe. Pollutants, specifically fecal bacteria, in these waterways may impact public health, local economies, and the natural environment. Residents and organizations are invited to participate and provide input toward the development a watershed-based plan to address water quality and reduce fecal bacteria. 

For more information about the project, visit https://www.h-gac.com/watershed-based-plans/san-jacinto-brazos-coastal-basin-tmdl-and-implementation-plan or contact Steven Johnston. 

Oyster Creek Stakeholder Meeting – December 14 (Hybrid)

H-GAC invites residents, local governments, businesses, and non-profits within the Oyster Creek Watershed in Brazoria and Fort Bend counties to attend a stakeholder meeting from 1 to 3 p.m. Wednesday, December 14. 

The meeting will be at the Lake Jackson Library, 250 Circle Way, Lake Jackson, and on Zoom. Registration is required to attend online. 

For more information about the project, visit https://www.h-gac.com/watershed-based-plans/san-jacinto-brazos-coastal-basin-tmdl-and-implementation-plan or contact Steven Johnston. 

Trash Bash – March 25, 2023 (In-Person)

Mark your calendar for the 29th River, Lakes, Bays ‘N Bayous Trash Bash®, Texas’s largest single-day waterway cleanup on Saturday, March 25, 2023. 

Since its inception, more than 117,000 volunteers have collected over 2,400 tons of trash, 22 tons of recyclable materials, and 11,965 tires. Find out how to volunteer and promote a healthy Galveston Bay watershed at one of their many cleanup locations on March 25.

Cleanup supplies, event t-shirts, and lunch are provided to all volunteers. Trash Bash hopes you will come out and help “Clean it like you mean it !” ® 

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) invites students in 6th through 12th grades to enter the annual Take Care of Texas Video Contest. Student videos should be 30 seconds long and portray positive ways Texans can help keep air and water clean, conserve water and energy, or reduce waste. The contest deadline is Friday, December 2, and the public will have the opportunity to pick their favorite videos January 17-23, 2023. There will be six winners. Waste Management of Texas, Inc. will provide prizes—gift cards and scholarships.  

For more than two decades, communities have come together on November 15 to celebrate America Recycles Day. Find tools for organizing or attending special events online

H-GAC's Community and Environmental Planning Department has compiled a list of local, regional, state, federal, and private funding sources for local governments and other organizations. H-GAC also maintains a list of ongoing funding opportunities for parks improvements, and conservation projects.

If you know of a funding opportunity, forward it to Andrea Tantillo.

Looking for interactive applications or GIS data related to the H-GAC Community and Environmental Planning Department? Visit H-GAC's interactive applications web page.

H-GAC has a Facebook page where information about current and upcoming events is posted. Please visit and like H-GAC's page. While there, visit other H-GAC pages on Facebook, including Recycling, and Trash Bash.