Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with David Baker and Robin Gary with the Watershed Association (WA) about the ongoing drought's impacts on Jacob's Well and the Trinity Aquifer.

Baker is an artist, conservationist, and environmental advocate equally at ease with a brush in his studio or envisioning an environmental canvas the size of the Texas Hill Country. Since moving his family to the iconic Jacob’s Well Spring near Wimberley in 1988, he has dedicated his life and boundless creative energy to the land, water and building a conservation network across Cypress Creek, the Blanco River watershed, and the Texas Hill Country. He founded the WA in 1996 and has since served as the Executive Director, having assembled more than 400 acres of owned and managed conserved lands surrounding Jacob’s Well in honor of protecting it and the waters that feed it.

Before joining the WA, Gary worked as a geographer for the U.S. Geological Survey's Texas Water Science Center doing data management, spatial analysis, and GIS, and was part of the team that helped establish the spring flow gauging station at Jacob's Well. She also served as the Public Information and Education Coordinator for the Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer Conservation District where she helped build an impactful and collaborative educational program, supported and educated well owners and groundwater users, and researched methods to assess groundwater use, well drilling trends, and aquifer dynamics.

Photo by Todd Votteler (3/27/2023).

Take a deep dive into the world of water with those making waves.