General Monthly Meeting: Prairie Presentation: "A Tale of Two Prairies"

The doors open at 7:00 PM, and the program starts at 7:30 PM. Everyone is welcome.

MARCH GENERAL MEETING:
We will have a presentation of “A Tale of Two Prairies”, the green version of the Charles Dickens classic. (“It was the best of prairies… etc.”) This is a program for prairie lovers and habitat restoration fans.
Our guest speakers will be Stephen Benigno and Andrew Newman of the Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD), who will update us on their prairie restoration projects. As many prairie enthusiasts know, no two prairies are the same. HCFCD manages a handful of sites with the intent to restore coastal prairie habitat. And while the restoration of a diverse, resilient, and functioning prairie is the ultimate goal, the reasons for restoring them are vastly different. Mr. Benigno and Mr. Newman will discuss the means, methods, and outcomes for restoring these coastal prairies, as well as the benefits they provide to Harris County.

Stephen Benigno is the Revegetation and Site Stabilization Coordinator for HCFCD. He currently supports and manages projects under water quality and revegetation programs, including wetland planting for water quality enhancement, water quality monitoring, prairie management, endangered species monitoring, and vegetation enhancement and soil stabilization studies. Prior to joining the District, he was awarded a PhD in Restoration Ecology from the University of Western Australia, where he used ecophysiological techniques to aid in the restoration of post-mine sites. He holds Bachelors of Science Degrees in Ecology and Botany from the University of Texas at Austin is a member of the Society for Ecological Restoration, Texas Chapter.

Andrew Newman manages the HCFCD wetland and stream mitigation banking program. His typical duties include evaluating the restoration potential of properties, writing restoration plans, conducting wetland delineations and functional assessments, coordinating with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Interagency Review Team to approve mitigation projects, and long-term monitoring and management of existing sites. Prior to joining HCFCD, Mr. Newman’s previous experience included avian ecology, classifying stream macroinvertebrate and fish assemblages, wetland assessments, threatened and endangered species habitat surveys, and habitat management. In his supreme botanical nerdom, Andy geeks out over the identification of grasses (Poaceae), sedges (Cyperaceae), and rushes (Juncaceae). Currently, Mr. Newman volunteers his time with Katy Prairie Conservancy, Native Prairies Association of Texas, and The Nature Conservancy conducting vegetative sampling and community classifications on local conservation properties. Texas coastal prairies, longleaf pine flatwoods, bogs, and baygalls are his favorite places to botanize.