Corps revises coastal barrier project
Officials’ proposal addresses worries over disruption and harm to marine life
GALVESTON — A more environmentally friendly gate across the mouth of Galveston Bay and a new alignment for a “ring barrier” protecting Galveston are among several revisions made by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to a coastal barrier proposal for the Houston-Galveston region.
The proposed $31 billion coastal spine project, which includes 71 miles of barriers and wildlife restoration efforts, was selected by the Corps last year as its preferred method for mitigating a catastrophic storm surge that could devastate the Southeast Texas coast. The proposal ran into overwhelming public opposition, particularly from residents of Galveston and Bolivar Peninsula.
In response, the Corps has begun revising the barrier alignment while it’s still in the draft stage. Where the original barrier concept called for raising main thoroughfares on Galveston and Bolivar Peninsula along with 71 miles of levees and gates, the Corps in May decided to shift to a less disruptive sand dune model .
The Corps presented its most recent changes Wednesday at its Stakeholder Partnering Forum at Texas A&M University at Galveston. The presentation addressed environmentalists’ concerns that a proposed gate spanning the mouth of the Houston Ship Channel might harm marine life by restricting the flow of saltwater and freshwater between Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.
The Corps solicited concepts for the gate as part of a design workshop with storm experts from around the world.
“We gave them the challenge that our (original) design caused a 27 percent (water flow) constriction — do better,” Corps Project Manager Kelly Burks Copes said.
The new configuration comprises two smaller gates separated by a monolith in the middle as opposed to one sweeping gate that would provide for one-
way boat traffic in both directions up Galveston Bay to the Houston Ship Channel. The revised design would restrict less than 10 percent of the water flow, Burks-Copes said. It would allow for two channels for boat traffic, preventing possible collisions.
Some environmentalists are skeptical of the Corps’ estimated water flow reduction from the new gate design. Azure Bevington, a coastal ecologist and High Island resident, said the platforms designed to hold the two smaller gates would obstruct a sizable percentage of the mouth of the bay.
“I don’t think that there’s any way they can reduce the restriction from the support structures required from the gates that they’re planning to less than 10 percent,” Bevington said. “The math I’ve seen based on the size of the gates doesn’t allow for that.”
Still in early stages
The Corps is developing models to analyze how salinity and sediment levels, as well as larval movement, would be affected by the new gate design, with results expected in the coming months.
The proposed ring barrier for Galveston is still in the early stages but is no longer being referred to as a “levee” as it was in the original proposal.
Burks-Copes said the revised ring barrier would incorporate existing 10-foot piers on the north side of Galveston Island. The original concept called for a levee along Harborside Drive, a main road that runs parallel to the island’s port and ship channel.
The revised proposal suggests building a 2-foot flood wall on top of those piers. The ring barrier would also encompass the Fish Village neighborhood on the far east end of Galveston and wrap around Offatts Bayou to 103rd Street on the west end of the island.
Galveston city leaders had expressed concern that the original ring levee proposal would hinder activities at the port, a key destination for major cruise ships. Burks-Copes said that while she has discussed the changes to the barrier proposal with city officials, the Corps has not yet met with the Port of Galveston.
Others were concerned a ring levee encircling Galveston would necessitate large pumps to mitigate severe flooding from a heavy rain storm such as Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
Jerry Mohn, president of the Texas chapter of the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association and a Galveston resident, said he was still not completely satisfied with the ring barrier proposal. Mohn, who attended a presentation the Corps gave on the barrier changes Thursday, noted the barrier could still affect some businesses near the port.
“I don’t know if they have that many pumps that can pump that water out when it starts to flood in that area,” Mohn said.
Burks-Copes said the Corps has discussed raising the Galveston seawall by 2 to 4 feet to accommodate anticipated sea level rise, but this element would not be included in the initial phase of barrier construction. Sea level off the coast of Texas is up to 18 inches higher than it was in 1950, and the rise is accelerating, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Whether these changes will reduce or increase the price tag to the coastal barrier remains to be seen. Burks-Copes cautioned that the Corps is still very much in the draft phase of this concept and will likely continue to tinker with the proposal until submitting it to Congress for approval in May 2021.
The impact of the design changes on the project cost is uncertain, Burks-Copes said.
“We’re still saying that we’re between $23 (billion) and $32 (billion) today, but the cost evaluation doesn’t happen until somewhere in the January or February time frame,” Burks-Copes said. “Until then, I can’t put my finger on it.”
Residents pleased
The Corps will hold a series of open houses beginning in January to solicit input from residents impacted by the barrier.
“We will not do formal comments; what we’ll do is set up posters and bring the team in and people will come and just talk to the team and get a feel for how the design is shaping up,” Burks-Copes said.
This approach has pleased coastal residents, particularly after the backlash to the Corps’ original proposal last year.
“I am certainly pleased that they are including the communities that are involved much more heavily in their planning process; that’s very important and unusual for them,” said Galveston City Councilwoman Jackie Cole, who represents the West End of the island.
The Corps will release a second draft environmental impact statement and report on the barrier proposal in October 2020, followed by a 45-day public comment period.