This agreement is to fund the state of texas' water quality management planning program to improve impaired water and protect unimpaired waters across the state by conducting planning that informs and…

This agreement is to fund the state of texas' water quality management planning program to improve impaired water and protect unimpaired waters across the state by conducting planning that informs and supports implementation of clean water act programs. In accordance with clean water act section 205(J)(3), unless a waiver request is approved by the environmental protection agency, the recipient will jointly develop workplans with and provide at least 40% of this award to regional or interstate watershed management planning agencies. This agreement is supported by funding provided under the infrastructure investment and jobs act (IIJA) (PL 117-58). Activities:the activities to be performed by the coastal bend bays and estuary program (CBBEP) include the following water quality management planning activities: long-term seagrass monitoring in coastal bend estuarine systems (CBBEP)--the objective is to provide an update on the status of texas coastal seagrass populations with a particular focus on the CBBEP area, as part of the texas seagrass monitoring program. An assessment of corpus christi BAY, the upper laguna madre, and baffin BAY will be conducted. Coastal bend watershed education: classroom visits (CBBEP)--the objective is to support an education and outreach program that cultivates personal responsibility for water quality and polluting behaviors in the coastal bend. This program will connect urban and rural communities of bays and estuaries by educating the public about urban waters, the effects of polluting behavior, and the impacts land use transitions have on water quality. Occurrence, distribution and composition of microplastics in bays and estuaries of the texas coastal bend, phase II (CBBEP)--the objective is to quantify the abundance and polymer types of microplastics in bays and estuaries of the coastal bend to collect baseline data to assess the occurrence, abundance, and temporal and spatial changes of microplastics in the marine environment. Microplastics will be collected and analyzed in the waters of copano BAY, aransas BAY, corpus christi BAY, nueces BAY, upper laguna madre, and baffin BAY quarterly (fall 2024 and winter 2024/2025), including some opportunistic sampling at the cole park and brawner parkway drain outlets right after floods (corpus christi BAY). Nueces delta environmental monitoring (CBBEP)--continue maintaining 1 current real-time salinity monitoring station on the rincon bayou. Data from this salinity station is being used to aid in the development of management strategies for the rincon bayou pipeline. Monitoring water quality in the nueces river tidal segment (CBBEP)--the purpose of the study is to continue to characterize water quality at a higher spatial temporal resolution, especially for bacteria and nutrient concentrations, to develop management strategies to improve water quality in the tidal segment of the nueces river system. Nutrient sampling in petronila creek (CBBEP)--conduct monthly water quality monitoring for nutrients in petronila creek and its tributaries. The nutrient data will be used to help fill the data gaps with respect to identifying all possible sources of the nutrient loading to baffin BAY and to monitor impacts of watershed restoration efforts. This data collection project will also address two of the nine elements of the SAN fernando and petronila creeks watershed protection plan, approved by EPA in 2022: 1) identify causes and sources of pollution, and 2) estimate pollution loading into the watershed and expected load reductions. OSO BAY/OSO creek and baffin BAY watershed public education and outreach (CBBEP)--continue working with the voices of the colonias (VOC), a local non-profit which provides assistance and social services to the underserved populations in south texas colonias, to provide watershed education and outreach to residents of rural underserved communities in the OSO BAY/OSO creek and baffin BAY watersheds.