Restoring and conserving our state’s natural heritage

When you think of iconic Texas landscapes — the Davis Mountains rising from the desert, Gulf Coast wetlands thick with migrating birds, the limestone canyons of the Hill Country — think of San Antonio native Suzanne Scott. She has spent her professional life working to restore, preserve and introduce fellow Texans to the natural environment. Her dedication to protecting nature makes her a finalist for Texan of the Year.

Under her leadership, the San Antonio River Authority transformed a neglected, channelized stretch of river into an 8-mile-long oasis of native vegetation and diverse wildlife. During Scott’s tenure as state director for The Nature Conservancy, the organization reached a joyous milestone: It protected its millionth acre of land. She is retiring this month, having helped safeguard Texans’ natural heritage for future generations.

Scott grew up in south San Antonio and said she has always felt deeply connected to the river there. In the summers, she went to a camp along the Guadalupe River and often visited cousins whose family owned a ranch.

She left her hometown to attend Texas Tech in Lubbock. After graduating with a degree in advertising and public relations, she returned to San Antonio, first taking a job at an art school along the river, then gravitating toward public service. She started at the San Antonio River Authority, or SARA, in communications and intergovernmental relations.

The authority’s mission is to make the river system safe, clean and enjoyable. Its responsibilities include flood control, improving water quality and creating recreational opportunities for residents.

“The theory was, the more people can enjoy the river, the more people will want to protect the river,” Scott said.

That ultimately led to the Mission Reach restoration project, which she considers her proudest accomplishment at SARA. The project freed the river from its concrete channel and re-created a more natural, varied flow with riffles and pools. Re-establishing lush, native vegetation helped improve water quality and prevent erosion. With its natural beauty restored, more people explore the river and understand its connection to the city’s historic Missions.

The Nature Conservancy gave Scott a chance to protect and restore ecosystems on a larger scale. Almost all land in Texas — 95% — is privately owned. To prevent development that could endanger important habitats or natural systems, The Nature Conservancy occasionally buys property or persuades owners to donate it.

But the most cost-effective strategy is to convince private landowners to voluntarily restrict development on their property in perpetuity with a conservation easement. That approach has helped The Nature Conservancy protect aquifer recharge zones and rangeland without displacing owners or prohibiting all economic use of a property.

In retirement, Scott plans to stay in her hometown, volunteering with local conservation projects, including one to create an arboretum in Brackenridge Park along the river she knows so well.

More Texan of the Year finalists here.

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