City of Houston Nature Preserve Ordinance

The City of Houston’s Parks and Recreation Department (HPARD) created a first-of-its-kind Nature Preserve Ordinance to protect existing natural habitat within 26 parks totaling 7,423 acres of land. The purpose of this ordinance is to preserve and protect, in perpetuity, city-owned natural areas by regulating public use and development of these lands. The policy protects threatened ecosystems, important water resources, and locally rare plant and wildlife populations.

In a nutshell, this resource offers:

• An overview of the City of Houston's nature Preserve Ordinance
• Background of how the ordinance came about.
• Results of the ordinance

How to use this resource:

• As inspiration for natural areas ordinances in other cities. 
• An an explanation of the process of drafting and passing an ordinance.

Author: Kelli Ondracek and Cassidy Kempt

Date published: 2024

Point of contact: Kelli Ondracek kelli.ondracek@houstontx.gov

Citation: Ondracek, Kelli and Kempt, Cassidy (2024) "City of Houston Nature Preserve Ordinance," Cities and the Environment (CATE): Vol. 13: Iss. 1, Article 36. DOI: 10.15365/cate.2020.1336

Resource is available online here.