Central Texas is dying of thirst
We wish to restore Texas lands with buffalo and beaver
Droughts have become the norm in Texas, but they shouldn’t be. Coupled with a growing population, endless economic growth and sprawl, and the incentives of the state and city governments to incentivize more AI data centers. Our water supply is drying up.
And this isn’t hypothetical; soon, we will all be forced to move. Water crisis refugees are migrating to places that are also facing critical shortfalls of their own. And again, this is all caused by our actions or lack of, via the mindless consumption society we have built. A society that is almost exclusively influenced by money and economic growth rather than what is good for us and the land we live on. San Antonio is racing towards a death path, predictable, avoidable, and most of all caused by our own actions. Climate change is real, yes, and it isn’t some designed-by-God sort of catastrophe. Climate change is much more local than you realize. Yes, often we think of and speak of climate change as a global issue, a sum of all the parts. But indeed, we can impact and influence our small part, and while that may not change the overall issue around the globe, it can help us survive locally.
San Antonio and central Texas have become overdeveloped. Too many factors have accumulated to degrade our ecosystems and their capacity to function properly. Over-grazing, industrial monocultural farming, natural gas fracking, the ever-expanding parking lots of Texas suburbia, overuse of water, and so much more.
So many problems, it can feel overwhelming, but the solution is simple.
We need to free the lands. Establish, protect, and manage natural protection areas for Texas to recover its wild self once again. If we can organize together as a city and as a region. We can prevent many of these issues by simply making it impossible for individuals to profit from abusing the lands.
And if you consider yourself a proud Texan, I feel like this is a no-brainer. Any Texan who loves Texas would want to protect Texas. RIght? Texas
That is our goal
Goco Goes is committing to creating and funding projects around the world that we believe can heal the lands and seas and create real change to heal our planet.
In San Antonio, we wish to work with landowners, ranchers, farmers, Indigenous groups, and concerned citizens to establish a huge and groundbreaking idea.
A Natural Protected Area around the Medina River Valley. We are basing this idea on the nearby Government Canyon State Natural Area, except this would be a citizen-led project. Within this area, we wish to reintroduce american bison(aka buffalo) and beaver into their respective habitats.
There have been several studies and projects where experts have seen that these two keystone species generate beneficial biodiversity impacts on their environments.
And we would carefully manage the lands so that they can safely engage with the land as wild as possible, given the constraints of the project. Now this isn’t gonna be so easy, but it isn’t impossible. And if we can work together, then we can generate huge positive change for the city. So, why would Buffalo and Beaver change anything related to our water crisis? You might ask. Simple. We believe that if we can revive the prairie lands and river system in this area, we can increase a few things.
Healthier soils and more native biodiversity mean better water retention, including more water seeping into the recharge zone, which our protection area stands above.
More plant biodiversity means more humidity, which means more chances of rain. Transpiration is like plant sweat. When the plants are thirsty, they sweat and create more humidity, creating greater chances for rain. Today, much of that land is desert-like farm land. For most of the year, the land is a dead zone with almost no plant life. Ending the farming practices and reviving the natural grasslands could definitely increase rainfall conditions.
Both Beavers and Buffalo have been shown to revive biodiversity. Beavers through dam creation and designing flood plains. And Buffalo through seed spreading. We respect these living beings as relatives and wish to collaborate with them to do what nature does best. Live.
So, if you think this is an idea worth supporting, we encourage you to sign up as an Earth Protector. It takes 2 mins to do, and only costs you a lunch, $15 per month. Your simple contribution allows us to do this. To create real change. Let go!
