Justin Bates, division manager for the Wildland Conservation Division with Austin Water, told the BCCP Coordinating Committee that recent winter storms and droughts have produced tree mortality and other damage across the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve and that staff are working to quantify how fuels and fire risk have changed.

Bates said staff are coordinating with the U.S. Forest Service to repeat a previous Baylor University fuel-study methodology so the team can measure changes over time. "We are working to get that agreement signed right now. We hope to have them out, as early as June, as late as probably September," he said, and added that initial data collection would continue through fall with preliminary results expected by this time next year.

Bates described ongoing monitoring and technology pilots: a 28-year live-fuel-moisture monitoring project and a partnership with the University of Texas to install continuous fuel-moisture sensors on ash-juniper to improve real-time understanding of vegetation moisture. He said staff also use LIDAR and remote sensing to map canopy loss and prioritize mitigation.

On fuel mitigation, Bates said the city and county have constructed about 30 miles of shaded fuel breaks between them and that the city currently budgets and spends roughly $350,000 to $400,000 per year on fuel-mitigation work on the BCP. "We make, on average, about a 350,000 to $400,000 investment each year just in fuel mitigation," he said.

Jeremy Hall, assistant director of Travis County Natural Resources, added that the county uses several grants and an ongoing yearly budget for fuel mitigation and that county staff are also pursuing FEMA hazard-mitigation grant opportunities. Both city and county staff told the committee that the primary ignition sources historically are human-related (roadway corridors, dropped cigarettes, trailer chains), and that mitigation and response strategies prioritize shaded-fuel breaks nearest homes and ignition corridors.

Bates noted challenges: shaded fuel breaks require ongoing maintenance, are costly to install on a per-linear-foot basis, and must be designed to achieve both wildfire risk reduction and the preserve's conservation goals (for example, avoiding canopy openings that encourage invasive grasses). He emphasized collaboration with utilities, emergency providers and neighboring landowners, and said staff are prioritizing work where homes are closest to preserve boundaries.

Travis County announced a public town hall on wildfire preparedness and mitigation scheduled for May 8 at St. Thomas More Catholic Church; the committee encouraged public participation and said outreach materials and signups would be posted on city and county BCP websites and shared partner calendars.

Next steps discussed included completing the Forest Service fuel remeasurement effort, continuing installation of continuous fuel-moisture monitors, and pursuing grant funding while ensuring sufficient staff capacity to manage mitigation projects.