City finalizes conservation easement on Shield Ranch

Shield Ranch and the city have agreed to the creation of a 202-acre conservation easement in southwest Travis County and northern Hays County, as part of voter-approved open space protection efforts included in the 2018 bond election. A portion of the appraised value of the easement was purchased using funds from the Water Quality Protection Lands Bond, while the Shield-Ayres-Bowen family donated the remainder of the land’s value. The land is part of the 6,600-acre Shield Ranch, which contains roughly 10 percent of the Barton Creek watershed. The easement prohibits commercial development while allowing agricultural and recreational uses, as well as limited residential development under specific restrictions. The agreement aims to protect water quality, hydrologic function and biodiversity in an area that has been under increasing development pressure. The easement will be monitored by the city of Austin, with annual site visits to ensure compliance. It is the third conservation easement on Shield Ranch, with the first established through the Nature Conservancy in Texas in 1998. The 2018 bond provided $72 million for land conservation across Barton Springs’ recharge and contributing zones. The funding has now been fully allocated, securing more than 6,800 acres of protected land.