Agreement approved to conserve some freshwater Texas oyster species

AUSTIN (KXAN) – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced on Tuesday it approved a 20-year agreement with the Lower Colorado River Authority to conserve “four freshwater mussel species in the lower Colorado River basin of Texas.”

Those conservation measures were put in place for the Texas pimpleback, Texas fawnsfoot, Texas fatmucket and Balcones spike, per a news release.

Back in June, the agency put together a proposal with the LCRA to protect freshwater mussels in Texas’ lower Colorado River basin. The proposal, called the Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances, is an agreement between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and landowners to help conserve habitats for at-risk species, the release states.

“We are committed to using flexibility under the Endangered Species Act to create innovative and customized conservation solutions that benefit both landowners and wildlife,” said Jeff Fleming, the Service’s Acting Southwest Regional Director, in the news release. “This CCAA is a win-win solution that provides LCRA/LCRA TSC the flexibility to manage their resources while also helping to ensure the long-term survival of these important species.”

Mussels, as well as other aquatic species, “play a vital role in the health of rivers and lakes,” the release said. The improvement of water quality and quantity or rivers, as well as streams, “benefits both freshwater mussels and the human communities and businesses that rely on these water sources.”

Freshwater mussels are threatened by declines in “water quality, loss of stream flow, riparian and instream habitat fragmentation, and degradation of instream habitats,” according to the release.

This new agreement will help address water quality and invasive species that impact the endangered species and “benefit at-risk and imperiled mussel species in Texas.”

“Working with river authorities to conserve freshwater mussels is essential because they have a deep understanding of their watersheds and the species that live there,” Fleming said. “We rely on the expertise, resources, and commitment of these partners to help us conserve and manage the habitats that these species need to survive and thrive.”

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