The city of Austin purchased a conservation easement in Shield Ranch, located within southwest Travis County and northern Hays County.

The conservation easement is a legal agreement between the landowner, Shield Ranch, and the holder of the easement, city of Austin. The agreement puts protections in place against large-scale developments on the 202 acres of wildland.

The details

As part of the easement, commercial development is prohibited on the Shield Ranch land. Agricultural and recreational activities are allowed, as well as a limited number of small-scale developments, such as family residences and nonprofit organization facilities. Any developments must follow “strict parameters” for development, according to a news release.

Shield Ranch holds 6,600 acres of protected wildland and is home to 10% of Barton Creek's watershed and over 6 miles of the creek, according to the release.

The agreement allows for protection of water quality, biodiversity and the overall ability of the Shield Ranch land to capture, store and release water.

With the recent agreement, about 98% Shield Ranch is now permanently protected through three separate conservation easements, Shield Ranch co-owner Bob Ayres said. The city of Austin holds two easements, and The Nature Conservancy in Texas holds one.

The city of Austin purchased a portion of the conservation easement using funds from the 2018 Water Quality Protection Lands Bond, which voters approved in November 2018, Watershed Protection Department public information specialist Alex Lari said. The $72 million bond funded permanent protection of over 6,830 acres of conservation land and open space across various water recharge and contributing zones for Barton Springs.

The Nature Conservancy in Texas Director of Land Protection Jeff Francell said the protection of Shield Ranch land is important for the health of Barton Creek. Having this protection would be difficult without funding from the bond, he said.

“I think of Shield Ranch as the lungs of Barton Creek,” Francell said. “Protecting this latest easement and in turn, Austin’s water quality, is possible because of the $72 million bond proposition which city of Austin voters passed in 2018.”

The remaining balance for the easement was donated by the Shield-Ayres-Bowen family who own Shield Ranch.

Also of note

The conservation easements do not give ownership of the land to the city of Austin or The Nature Conservancy in Texas. Instead, the holding parties monitor the easements and make sure Shield Ranch officials follow conservation agreements. Austin officials are required to visit the property at least once a year for monitoring.

The ranch is still privately owned by the Shield-Ayres-Bowen family.