AUSTIN, Texas – A local bird observatory is pulling double duty, letting people enjoy nature all while treating the water that came from its pipes.
- 1,200-acre observatory
- Doubles as a waste water treatment plant
- Processes 1.5 million gallons of water a day
“I started bird watching seriously within the last couple of years but I grew up doing it with my family,” says Austin resident Nick Komar.
Just across the highway from the airport there are 1,200 acres to do just that at the Hornsby Bend Bird Observatory.
“We have riparian wetlands and bottom land forests, grassland fields. All this diversity means lots of different creatures live here,” says Kevin Anderson with the Hornsby Bend Bird Observatory.
The Hornsby Bend Bird Observatory was a waste water treatment plant before it ever became an observatory.
In the late 1950s, birders in the area discovered the ponds at the treatment plant after seeing ducks flying across the Colorado River. When they went searching for where the ducks were going, they found the treatment facility.
To this day, anytime customers with Austin Water flush it ends up at the facility where it gets treated and recycled instead of ending up in a landfill.
“What we get each day is a million and a half gallons. It’s only 2 percen solids so the very first thing we do is thicken it, take water out of that of that flow and that’s the water that ends up in the ponds,” says Anderson.
Because of the wet conditions, rare and native birds alike show up at the facility. This time of year is the perfect time to spot shore birds.
“But there’s a lot that only pass for a brief period of time. Those are the species you want to document,” says Komar.
If you want to learn more about bird watching at the Hornsby Bend Bird Observatory click here.