The Galveston Bay Foundation (“GBF”) and HARC (Houston Advanced Research Center) are partnering to provide citizens the new Galveston Bay Report Card that will feature critical information on the health of Galveston Bay, one of the most important and productive bays in the country. Through a generous $720,000 grant from Houston Endowment, the Galveston Bay Report Card will provide the public with citizen-driven, science-based measures to assess the health of the bay. The report card will discuss topics such as the status of key habitats (e.g. wetlands, seagrass, oyster reefs), fish and wildlife populations, trends in water quality of local bayous and the bay, and impacts of coastal change and sea level rise.

The Galveston Bay Report Card will provide answers to the questions that citizens and stakeholders often ask, such as:

• Where can I fish in the bay?
• Is it safe to eat Galveston Bay fish and shellfish?
• Is the water clean? Has it gotten cleaner or dirtier over the years?
• Can I swim in the bay’s waters?

The Galveston Bay Report Card will use a novel approach to base the development of scientific indicators on what the public wants to know about the bay and surrounding watershed. To determine what citizens would like to know about Galveston Bay, GBF and HARC will utilize web and social media to reach out to community leaders, members of the public, and stakeholders, including boaters, fishermen, educators, and civic groups to determine their interests, thus making the Galveston Bay Report Card useful to all who live near, use and enjoy the bay.

The goal of the Galveston Bay Report Card, scheduled to be released in early 2015, is to promote the conservation of Galveston Bay’s natural resources and to increase public participation in the creation of and support for management strategies that protect the bay.

About Galveston Bay Foundation
The mission of the Galveston Bay Foundation is to preserve, protect, and enhance the natural resources of the Galveston Bay estuarine system and its tributaries for present users and for posterity. The Foundation was incorporated in 1987, and is a non-profit organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. GBF is located at 17330 Highway 3 in Webster, Texas. For further information, contact GBF at (281) 332-3381 or visit the website at www.galvbay.org.

About Houston Advanced Research Center
HARC, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization incorporated as Houston Advanced Research Center, is a research hub providing independent analysis on energy, air, and water issues to people seeking scientific answers. HARC is focused on building a sustainable future that helps people thrive and nature flourish. For further information, contact HARC at (281) 367-1348 or visit the website at www.HARCresearch.org.