In May 1998, Austin voters approved
$65 million in bonds to purchase approximately 15,000 acres of land and conservation easements to protect water quality.  Loomis Austin worked with a team including the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, The Nature Conservancy of Texas, the Trust for Public Land, and the American Institute for Learning to develop land management plans for the Water Quality Protection Lands.  Tasks undertaken by
LAI include hydrological studies, cultural resources, endangered species surveys, and geographic information system database management.