Land that once was intended as headquarters for a lignite mine is today one of the state’s premier sites for showcasing innovative land and wildlife management practices.

Cooper Farm Natural Science Laboratory, located about 70 miles east of Austin in northern Fayette County, models techniques that landowners can use to improve land productivity, protect area wildlife, and conserve soil and water. The 180-acre site is home to trails that guide visitors through gardens of native grasses and wildflowers and ponds that provide a habitat for waterfowl and fish.

One of the barns provides a meeting place for 4-H, Future Farmers of America, wildlife cooperatives and schools to study ways to manage lands and wildlife more effectively, as well as related topics such as safe farming practices.

 Farm acquired in 1984 for lignite mine

LCRA had quite different plans when it purchased the cattle and hay farm in 1984. At the time LCRA was planning to strip mine up to 9,600 acres of Fayette County farmland for lignite to fuel the third unit of the nearby Fayette Power Project. But economic changes led LCRA to abandon its plans for lignite, and the mine project, in 1989 – and the farm’s previous owner, Theodore Cooper, didn’t want to buy back the land.

An alternative plan for the land emerged, as LCRA, working with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the county extension service, developed the farm to showcase land-management and wildlife-conservation techniques, building on the work of Cooper and the farm’s longtime manager, Merle Sternadel.

The farm serves as home base for the North Central Fayette County Wildlife Management Co-Op has increased the population of whitetail deer, which had become depleted in earlier years. That achievement earned the farm and the cooperative the first-ever Lone Star Land Steward Award by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in 1996 for outstanding accomplishments in habitat management and wildlife conservation.

Cooper Farm is part of LCRA’s mission of helping Texans be good stewards of their natural resources.

Cooper Farm is open to the public weekdays 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday by appointment. (It’s best to call ahead before you come). Admission is free. For more information, call 1-800-776-5272, Ext. 8140.

This barn is perfect for 4-H meetings.

Cooper Farm is a great place to learn
cattle management skills.

Cooper Farm helps landowners improve land productivity and soil conservation.