Conservation Stories

Tillery Timmons-Sims visits with Heather Kinkade of ARCSA International to talk about rainwater harvesting, stormwater catchment, and how communities can make better use of the water that falls on rooftops, streets, and developed spaces. Heather explains the difference between rainwater and stormwater, how captured water can be treated for different uses, and why these systems are becoming increasingly important as water supplies tighten.

From rain barrels and rooftop systems to rain gardens, curb cutouts, underground tanks, and large-scale commercial projects, this conversation explores practical ways homeowners, builders, cities, and entrepreneurs can rethink water conservation. It’s a hopeful look at how many small, coordinated solutions can add up to a more resilient water future.

More about our guest: 

Heather Kinkade, Executive Director for ARCSA International

Website - https://arksainternational.org/

For more information about SARA, please visit sara-conservation.com

Support the Conservation Stories Podcast

Follow SARA for more updates  •  Instagram  •  Facebook  •  LinkedIn •  X/Twitter

Conservation Stories is presented by The Sandhills Area Research Association (SARA). Subscribe now to hear all the interviews.

We are proud to bring you our local radio show, The Dry Side Dispatch. All past episodoes of the radio show are available on the Sandhills Area Research Association You Tube channel. You can also listen live via the YouTube chanel on Friday's at Noon. All future episodes will now be included on this platform and the Sandhills Area Research Association's website. 

The Dry Side Dispatch is a West Texas radio show and media project from the Sandhills Area Research Association broadcast live on KRFE 95.9 FM. Hosted by Tillery Timmons-Sims, Andy Timmons, and Dusty Timmons, the program focuses on regional agriculture, land conservation, hunting, oil and gas, and local news

This episode of The Dry Side Dispatch explores how communities balance short-term costs with long-term value, beginning with new possibilities for treated produced water in the Permian Basin and expanding into a broader discussion of Lubbock’s growth, infrastructure, education, and public investment. The hosts and guest Nick discuss how parks, neighborhood schools, roads, utilities, and public programs can create benefits that are difficult to measure purely in dollars, while also acknowledging the need for responsible spending and better long-term planning. Much of the conversation centers on preserving a sense of community as Lubbock grows, questioning whether government should always be “run like a business,” and considering how past decisions around electricity, development, schools, and maintenance have shaped the city today.

Dusty Timmons visits with attorney and conservation advocate Cole Payne about the changing landscape of Texas land use. From wind and solar leases to battery storage, data centers, remediation requirements, and long-term landowner protections, Cole explains why landowners need to understand the details before signing agreements that could shape their property for generations.

The conversation also turns toward conservation easements and the importance of preserving working lands, wildlife habitat, and outdoor traditions. Cole shares how programs like Texas Brigades are helping young people connect with natural resources, build leadership skills, and carry conservation forward into the future.

Tillery Timmons-Sims visits with Will Masters of Ogallala Life Conservation to learn about landscape rehydration work happening in the Amarillo area. Will shares how his team is using natural materials like rocks, brush, trees, and old Christmas trees to build small “leaky dam” structures that slow runoff, capture sediment, and help water soak back into dryland creek systems.

From Wildcat Bluff Nature Center to Rock Creek in Borger, this conversation explores how small, place-based restoration projects can improve watershed health, reduce flooding, support vegetation, and create hope for a more water-secure High Plains. It’s a reminder that conservation does not always come from one silver bullet, but from many small efforts that add up over time.

More about our guest: 

Will Masters. Attorney. Environmental Educator at Wildcat Bluff Nature Center. Director at Ogallala Life (now a program of Ogallala Commons)

Instagram - ogallalalife & wmasters3

Website - www.ogallala.life

For more information about SARA, please visit sara-conservation.com

Support the Conservation Stories Podcast

Follow SARA for more updates  •  Instagram  •  Facebook  •  LinkedIn •  X/Twitter

Conservation Stories is presented by The Sandhills Area Research Association (SARA). Subscribe now to hear all the interviews.

Dusty Timmons visits with Michael Scherer of Fishing’s Future to talk about helping families discover the outdoors through fishing, education, and conservation. Michael shares how the organization began as a way to teach families together, not just kids, and how its programs have grown to include family fish camps, school partnerships, adaptive fishing opportunities, ambassador training, and hands-on conservation education.

This conversation explores why fishing is more than catching fish. It is a way to build memories, reconnect generations, teach responsibility for natural resources, and give families the confidence to keep going outdoors together long after the first cast.

Tillery Timmons-Sims welcomes back Ladonna Clayton for a conversation about groundwater conservation, agricultural transition, and what it takes to protect the Ogallala Aquifer before the well runs dry. Ladonna shares how her work in eastern New Mexico is helping producers voluntarily retire irrigation wells, conserve water, and transition to new forms of agricultural production without leaving families or communities behind.

The episode explores incentive-based water conservation, conservation easements, aquifer rebound data, the role of state and federal funding, and the possibility of a “CRP for water” approach that could help farmers, ranchers, municipalities, and rural economies adapt for the future.

More about our guest: 

Ladona Clayton, Executive Director, Ogallala and & Water Conservancy

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Dr.LKC/

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ladona-clayton-8a98a423/

Website - ogalwc.org

For more information about SARA, please visit sara-conservation.com

Support the Conservation Stories Podcast

Follow SARA for more updates  •  Instagram  •  Facebook  •  LinkedIn •  X/Twitter

Conservation Stories is presented by The Sandhills Area Research Association (SARA). Subscribe now to hear all the interviews.

Dusty Timmons visits with Dana Dykema of the Ignite Podcast and Women Hunt to talk about her path into hunting as an adult, beginning with a desire to better understand where her food comes from. Dana shares how her work connecting local farmers with consumers led her into conversations about regenerative agriculture, conservation, and eventually hunting as a deeper expression of food responsibility.

The conversation follows Dana’s first hunt, her family’s growing interest in the outdoors, the challenges of learning as an adult-onset hunter in Canada, and the community she has found through Women Hunt, the Wild Sheep Foundation, and the Ignite Podcast. It’s a story about food, family, courage, and finding your place in the conservation world.

Tillery Timmons-Sims visits with Mark Funderburk, president and CEO of UMC Health System, to talk about healthcare, leadership, service, and the role UMC plays across Lubbock and the surrounding region. Mark shares his personal path into healthcare, UMC’s mission as a public hospital, and the importance of building a sustainable culture where employees, patients, and communities feel supported.

The conversation explores rural healthcare, regional medical access, trauma and burn care, EMS, cancer treatment, urgent care, employee well-being, and the long-term investments needed as Lubbock continues to grow. It’s a meaningful look at how healthcare, community, stewardship, and service intersect in West Texas.

More about our guest: 

Mark Funderburk, President & CEO, UMC Health System

For more information about SARA, please visit sara-conservation.com

Support the Conservation Stories Podcast

Follow SARA for more updates  •  Instagram  •  Facebook  •  LinkedIn •  X/Twitter

Conservation Stories is presented by The Sandhills Area Research Association (SARA). Subscribe now to hear all the interviews.

Dusty Timmons sits down with longtime Texas fly fishing guide and conservation advocate Chuck Naiser to talk about the decades-long work of protecting the Texas Gulf Coast. From the early fight to stop commercial gill netting of redfish and trout to Chuck’s current work with FlatsWorthy and oyster reef preservation, this conversation explores what it takes to defend a natural resource before it reaches the tipping point.

Chuck shares the history, hard lessons, and persistence behind coastal conservation efforts, including the creation of oyster reef sanctuary areas, the importance of healthy bay ecosystems, and why responsible stewardship matters for anglers, communities, and future generations.

In this episode of Conservation Stories, Tillery sits down with Marshall Tolleson of HSI Water to talk about irrigation water, soil salinity, and the chemistry behind healthier fields. Marshall shares his path from ag research and extension work to helping bring sulfur-based water treatment technology to Texas, explaining how sulfurous acid systems can help reduce salt buildup, improve infiltration, support nutrient availability, and make every inch of irrigation water work harder.

More about our guest:
Marshall Tolleson
Website
Text SALTY to 9792322528
Email

For more information about SARA, please visit sara-conservation.com

Support the Conservation Stories Podcast

Follow SARA for more updates  •  Instagram  •  Facebook  •  LinkedIn •  X/Twitter

Conservation Stories is presented by The Sandhills Area Research Association (SARA). Subscribe now to hear all the interviews.