As Houston expands westward, valuable habitat, open space, traditional ecological functions and agricultural lands are lost. The Katy Prairie's very existence is now threatened by rapidly changing economic and social forces. These economic and social forces are formidable, but loss of the Prairie is not inevitable. In the fall of 1992, the Katy Prairie Conservancy was established in the belief that creative cooperation among those with an interest in the Katy Prairie - landowners, developers, hunters, environmentalists, and residents can result in consensus-based land management strategies without painful economic sacrifices or politically-forced solutions to save this invaluable resource.

Mission and Goals

      Our mission is to preserve, protect, and enhance critical and sustainable portions of the Katy Prairie ecosystem. We achieve our mission through the following:

• Protecting between 30,000 and 60,000 acres of the Katy Prairie, primarily in its current agricultural state, and with some appropriate portions enhanced as wetlands and restored prairie habitat.
• Involving the local community and all stakeholders in the Katy Prairie Conservancy, including hunters, conservationists, landowners, local residents, farmers and developers.
• Responsible stewardship of protected land.
• Conducting and facilitating research needed for the accomplishment of our mission.
• Promoting ecotourism and other economic incentives for conservation on the Prairie.
• Educating the public about the Katy Prairie.

      The Katy Prairie Conservancy plans to accomplish its goals through use of established land trust strategies.  We do not intend to advocate political positions to achieve our objectives.  Tools we are currently using to protect land on the Katy Prairie include:

• Outright acquisition of targeted habitats through purchases, bargain sale arrangements, and land donations

• Agreements with private landowners to permanently protect their land's conservation values through the creation of limits on development

• Working with cooperating landowners to develop and implement wildlife management plans for their property

• Acceptance of ownership and stewardship responsibilities for wetland mitigation projects completed by developers who are complying with Clean Water Act wetlands regulations; these wetland creation or enhancement projects are implemented under criteria developed by the Conservancy, and they are conveyed to the Conservancy at the end of the developer's maintenance and monitoring period.

• Participation in the Houston Area Seed Bank Project, assisting in the creation, restoration, and enhancement of native tall-grass prairie communities

• Development and implementation of habitat management projects on Conservancy owned or managed lands, to benefit game species, non-game species, and/or species of special concern