CEC NOTES 

• What headline would you like to see about the Houston environment in 2018?
• What do you see as issues or events of importance to the greater Houston region’s environmental community in 2019?
• What is your environmental resolution for 2019?

1. Christmas tree recycling
   The City of Houston is offering drop-off service at 26 locations around the city through Jan. 15, 2019. See fox26houston.com for details. Don’t forget: The trees must have all decorations, ornaments, tinsel, lights and stands removed. Flocked trees cannot be recycled.The City of Pearland continues recycling Christmas trees through Jan. 12, 2019. Recycling will be 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays at the Stella Roberts Recycling Center, 5800 Magnolia, Pearland. For more information, visit keeppearlandbeautiful.org.
2. Urban Harvest 2019 classes begin January 10
   From Jan. 10 through May 16, 2019, Urban Harvest will hold a series of 10 classes on Growing Organic Vegetables. Those who complete the 25-hour course will become certified Organic Vegetable Specialists. Other classes offered this spring include Growing Fruit Trees in Small Spaces, Sustainable Living Through Permaculture, and Designing Green Homes and Communities. For information on all class offerings and to register, visit urbanharvest.networkforgood.com.
3. Houston Audubon presents “BirdCast: Perspectives on Bird Migration”
   On Jan. 10, 2019, from 7-8:30 p.m., Houston Audubon will present Dr. Andrew Farnsworth, research associate at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, who will discuss BirdCast, a collaborative effort between ornithologists and computer scientists to further our understanding of the biology of bird migration by using state-of-the-art machine learning and computer science techniques in combination with data collected with remote sensing methods. The event will be held at the United Way, 50 Waugh Drive. For more information, visit houstonaudubon.org.
4. Sierra Club Houston Group presents Riverwoods: Exploring the Wild Neches
   On Jan. 10, 2019, from 7:30-9:30 p.m., the Sierra Club Houston Group will host its monthly meeting, featuring a presentation by author/photographer Charles Kruvand, who will discuss his new book, Riverwoods: Exploring the Wild Neches. The event will be held at St. Stephen’s Pecore Hall, 1805 W. Alabama Drive. For more information, visit sierraclub.org/texas/houston.
5. Habitat Island Volunteering with Exploration Green
   On Jan. 12, 2019, from 8 a.m.-noon, Exploration Green will hold a volunteer event at its Habitat Island. Volunteers will check irrigation lines, prune and retie trees, and clear excessive growth around them. For more information, see the Facebook event.
6. High Island Volunteering with Houston Audubon
   On Jan. 12, 2019, from 8:30 a.m.-noon, Houston Audubon will host a volunteer coastal restoration workday at High Island in Chambers County. A lunch will be provided. For more information and to register, visit houstonaudubon.org.
7. Houston Botanic Garden Call for Volunteers
   The Houston Botanic Garden is holding volunteer orientations on Jan. 12, 2019 (9 -10:30 a.m.) and Feb. 12, 2019 (6:30 – 8 p.m.). HBG has many volunteer opportunities available from administrative and special
   events support to hosting site walks to getting your hands dirty in the Garden. For more information and
   to register, complete the online form.
8. Free Farm Tour: Explore Your Food
   On Jan. 12, 2019, beginning at 9:30 a.m., Finca Tres Robles, 257 N. Greenwood St., will host three free tours of the farm to allow people to see what’s growing on the farm and meet who is growing it. For more information, see the Facebook event.
9. Blackwood Farm School Winter Session begins January 14
   The Blackwood Educational Land Institute, located in Hempstead, is offering its Farm School Winter Session, beginning Jan. 14, 2019. This once-monthly, experiential program is designed to provide students with an in-depth, hands-on look into how a 21st Century farm operates. Students will live the full cycle of basic agro-ecology and learn the value of preparing wholesome food. For more information and to register, visit blackwoodland.org.
10. Houston Urban Gardeners Annual Fruit Tree Talk
    On Jan. 14, 2019, from 6:30-8:30 p.m., Houston Urban Gardeners will hold their Annual Fruit Tree Talk, with an emphasis on permaculture, at the West Gray Multiservice Center, 1475 West Gray Blvd. For more information, see the Facebook event.
11. Gulf of Mexico Climate and Resilience Community of Practice grants
    The Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, in collaboration with NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management and the Gulf of Mexico Climate and Resilience Community of Practice, is seeking coastal communities to participate in climate adaptation projects that will serve as local examples for other Gulf communities. This collaborative project will involve financial assistance through a small grant award. Interested communities should submit a Letter of Intent detailing the need for incorporating climate considerations into their existing planning frameworks and their interest in implementing a project to reduce risk to coastal climate stressors and/or extreme weather events. The deadline for LOI submissions is Jan. 15, 2019. For more information, visit masgc.org.
12. Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council on Red Snapper public hearing
    On Jan. 15, 2019, beginning at 6 p.m., the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will hold a public hearing at the League City Civic Center and Recreation Center, 300 West Walker Street. to solicit comment on Draft Amendment 50 – State Management of Recreational Red Snapper. The Council is considering state management that would provide flexibility to the Gulf states to set the recreational Red Snapper shin season and potentially other management measures. Also, a related webinar will be held on Jan. 17. For more information and to register for the webinar, visit gulfcouncil.org.
13. HREG Mission Moment: Central Houston Solar Co-Op
    On Jan. 15, 2019, from 6:30-7:30 p.m., the Houston Renewable Energy Group will hold a “Mission Moment” meeting to discuss ways to expand solar power to central Houston through a non-profit project sponsored by HREG and Solar United Neighbors. The meeting will be held at the United Way, 50 Waugh Drive.
14. Texas Association of Environmental Professionals Luncheon Meeting
    On Jan. 17, 2019, from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., the Texas Association of Environmental Professionals will hold its monthly luncheon meeting, featuring a presentation called “The Past, Present and Future of Subsidence in Houston Area,” by Michael J. Turco, general manager, Houston-Galveston and Fort Bend Subsidence Districts. The event will be held at the Cadillac Bar, 1802 Shepherd Drive. For more information, visit taep.memberclicks.net.
15. “Solarize The Woodlands” presentation
    On Jan. 17, 2019, beginning at 7 p.m., The Woodlands G.R.E.E.N. sponsors Going Green Sustainability Lecture, “Solarize The Woodlands,” at the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC), 8801 Gosling Road. Dori Wolfe, founder of Wolfe Energy and active member of Solarize Houston, will speak on how to bring solar to the area via rooftop solar for homes and businesses. For more information, visit thewoodlandsgreen.org.
16. Houston Audubon Bird Count/Walk at Willow Waterhole
    On Jan. 19, 2019, beginning at 8 a.m., Houston Audubon will lead a monthly bird count and walk at Willow Waterhole, starting at The Meeting Place, 5310 South Willow. Over the years, over 200 separate species have been identified. For more information, visit the Facebook event.
17. Arbor Day Volunteering at Memorial Park 
    On Jan. 19, 2019, beginning at 9 a.m., the Memorial Park Conservancy, Trees For Houston, and Houston Parks and Recreation Department is offering an opportunity for volunteers to plant more than 800 trees at the Park. Gloves and shovels will be provided. For more information and to register, visit memorialparkconservancy.org.
18. Call for submissions for Gulf Coast Green 2019
    The 2019 Gulf Coast Symposium and Expo, the leading green building conference in the region. will be held May 17, 2019 at Rice University’s Moody Center for the Arts. Submissions are now being sought from presenters from the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, engineering, planning, interior design, government, education, the arts, contracting, energy analysis, and other building-related professions relevant to the conference theme, “CROSSROADS: Inclusive Exchange.” The deadline for submissions is Jan 21, 2019. For more information, visit aiahouston.org.
19. Houston Oiled Wildlife Response Workshop
    On Jan. 25, 2019, from 9 a.m.-4 p.m., The Wildlife Center of Texas is offering an Oiled Wildlife Response Workshop at the Houston SPCA’s Carruth Education Center, 7007 Old Katy Road. The workshop will certify and train people interested in assisting The Wildlife Center of Texas Oiled Wildlife Response Team during a spill. It will cover the effects of oil on wildlife, initial intake and exam of oiled wildlife, an introduction to OSHA training, wildlife rehabilitation’s role in Incident Command System, and actual hands-on cleaning of oiled feathers in which participants will practice by washing an un-oiled white duck. All permitted wildlife rehabilitators and trainees, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, state wildlife officials, industry environmental personnel, local veterinarians, veterinarian technicians, as well as interested citizens are invited to participate. RSVP via e-mail to wildliferesponse@wildlifecenteroftexas.org. There is no cost for the workshop, but spaces fill up quickly and seating is limited, so please register as soon as possible.
20. TV: Texas Parks & Wildlife
    Broadcast on KUHT Channel 8 at 3 p.m. each Saturday and on municipal access cable channels in Baytown, Deer Park, Houston, Texas City, Galveston, Nassau Bay, Pasadena, Seabrook, Sugar Land, and on HCC TV. More info on the TPWD website (* indicates a segment about the Houston area). For a preview, visit TPWD’s YouTube Page.
    • Old oyster shells help restore Texas reefs
    • A Clay County ranch earns the Lone Star Steward Award
    • Investigating the health of North Texas bees