In January, Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock held a rare news conference on the floor of the Texas Senate to announce the filing of a major overhaul of state water law.

   Top officials of the state's three major-related agencies were among those at his side. The chairmen of  the Texas Water Development Board and the   Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission offered brief supportive remarks. But Lee Bass, chairman of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission, deferred to the agency's executive director

   It was a typical moment for Bass, 41 who shuns the spotlight Yet has been instrumental in shaping state water policy. A conservationist and investor, he brings views from both roles to the debate.

   Bass the conservationist is a hunter and fisherman who serves on the boards of the International Black Rhino Foundation and the Peregrine Fund. He raises black rhinoceroses on his ranch near Falfurrias in South Texas.

   "Water for fish and wildlife is the highest environmental issue for the commission, and it’s due to his leadership," says Larry McKinney, the parks and wildlife agency's senior director for aquatic resources.

   Bass the investor sees water as a major financial play for the '90s. Forbes Magazine recently estimated his fortune, built from oil and real estate, at $3.4 billion. Those deep pockets allowed him and his billionaire brother Edward to acquire 50,000 acres of  agricultural land and water rights in the Southwest, mainly in the Imperial Valley of California but also including about 5,000 acres in the Edwards Aquifer region west of San Antonio.

Bass declined to be interviewed for this article. In California,  critics accused the Basses of essentially trying to create a water cartel that would realize huge profits by selling the water rights acquired with their farmland to thirsty cities.

   The Edwards Aquifer farmland holdings also were controversial. They were acquired by a partnership the Basses formed with John Cardwell, a lawyer in Austin. Critics say the Basses sought to conceal   their role, but Bass associates say the brothers' involvement was widely known.

   Despite the relatively modest size of the holdings, the Edwards Aquifer Authority became alarmed about the prospects of wealthy interests speculating in water and transferring sizable supplies from irrigation to municipal purposes. Board members tightened proposed rules governing the transfer of water rights.

   Associates of Lee Bass see no conflict between his conservation and financial interests. Rather, they say, the interests are complementary.

   Ardon Moore, a Bass adviser, says the trading of water rights holds promise for ensuring sufficient supplies for agriculture, cities and the environment. How? Investing in water conservation on the farm can free up supplies that can be sold at a reasonable cost to growing cities. At the same time, adequate water can be earmarked for aquatic life and other environmental needs.

   Adds Richard Heckmann, chairman of U S. Filter: "Anybody who knows Lee Bass would never consider him to be a water baron. He is a soft-spoken, concerned person. All of our discussions revolved around the question of how we solve these problems and keep the farmers in business. We're trying to do some good and make some money too."