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Q. What does your typical workday look like?
A. I normally work from 7:30 to 4:30, with occasional weekend work. I'm also on call if a pollution incident occurs. I do lots of number crunching, analysis and evaluation of water quality data. With so many threats to water quality, there is rarely a dull moment. A few if the issues that came up this week were decreasing freshwater inflows to Matagorda Bay, the impact of 4-wheel drive vehicles on the aquatic ecology of small streams, the logistics of stocking rainbow trout in a local lake and answering questions about freshwater jellyfish in Lake Travis.
Q. What kinds of coursework/experiences do you suggest middle/high school students should focus on if they want to pursue a career like yours?
A. Any and all science classes. Math, chemistry and biology all play a role in my day to day job. And writing classes. Often times some folks are brilliant in their field of expertise, but unable to communicate their ideas because of poor writing skills.
Q. What do you like best about your job/career?
A. The challenge and variety. I feel that my job helps to ensure the protection of the water quality in the Highland Lakes, Colorado River and its tributaries for generations to come. I want my two-year old daughter to be able to swim in the same swimming holes I did and to be able to eat the fish she catches from the river twenty years from now. I've worked at the LCRA for over eighteen years and have loved every day of it.
Q. What do you find most frustrating?
A. Apathy. Folks that take water quality and the environment for granted. Did you know that folks in Houston get excited when there is a fish kill in the Houston Ship Channel? At least they have fish now. For years, fish were not able to live because of all the pollution. Along the Colorado River, there are no fish consumption advisories. In other words, you can eat any fish you catch. That's not to say we don't have our own problems. Several of the creeks and streams have high bacteria levels, particularly after a rainfall event. A few have low dissolved oxygen levels during the summer.
Q. If you were given a chance to start your own business (profit/non-profit), what would it be?
A. A fishing guide along the coast. I love to fish and would be on the water nearly everyday. Since every river eventually empties into a bay or estuary, the bays are a good barometer about the health of our rivers. One of the greatest threats in many areas is not the quality of the water but the quantity. As more and more people move to Central Texas, more and more water is needed and eventually less water makes it down to the bays that depend on freshwater to be productive.
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