Just over 10% of the 2023 mitigation projects prioritized as “Tier 1” to protect the Texas coast are in Southeast Texas, according to an April 6 announcement from Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, M.D.
The 2023 Texas Coastal Resiliency Master Plan (TCRMP) proposes a framework to address coastal hazards and direct investments to protect natural and man-made coastal environments. The plan recommends 121 projects prioritized as Tier 1 by the Texas General Land Office (GLO) to mitigate issues that negatively impact the Texas coast, 14 of which are in Jefferson and Orange counties.
“Protecting our 367 miles of Texas coastline is vital to our state’s economy,” said Buckingham. “The Texas Coastal Resiliency Master Plan provides a strategic path in prioritizing projects to ensure long-term resilience of our diverse coastal ecosystems and protecting coastal resources for future generations.”
Projects in Jefferson County include the J.D. Murphree Wildlife Management Area (WMA) Shoreline Protection ($13 million), Keith Lake Fish Pass and Battle Repairs and Upgrades ($3.8 million), McFadden National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) Gulf Shoreline Stabilization ($38.5 million), McFadden NWR Willow Lake March Beneficial Use ($8.6 million), North Pleasure Island Shoreline Protection and Restoration ($4.4 million), Texas Bayou Water Control Structure ($6 million), Texas Point NWR Beach Nourishment Project ($43.4 million), Texas Point NWR Beneficial Use ($11.4 million) and Texas Point NWR Shoreline Protection Sabine Neches Waterway and Oyster Habitation Creation ($5 million).
The Southeast Texas Flood Coordination Study for the Regional Flood Sensor System ($900,000) would benefit Jefferson and Orange counties.
One Jefferson County project, which would affect Hardin County, is the Neches Rover Forested Floodplain, which will cost $30 million.
Orange County projects are the Lower Neches WMA Lake Street Drive Beneficial Use ($6 million), Old River Cove Restoration ($9.2 million) and the Sydney Island Restoration ($10 million).
The total cost of projects in Jefferson and Orange counties is more than $180 million.
The plan is updated every four years and additionally incorporates the utilization of the most current storm surge and relative sea level rise models to illustrate the need and benefit of these projects into the future. A list of high-priority coastal resiliency initiatives and projects was developed to address risks such as storm surge, inland flooding, shoreline change, and degraded water quality, among others.
The TCRMP is separate from, yet complementary to, ongoing federal coastal protection efforts led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Federal efforts include the Coastal Texas Program and Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay Coastal Storm Risk Management (CSRM) Program, which focus on implementation of the Coastal Barrier System and other storm risk reduction projects.
The TCRMP provides a priority list of projects that could be funded through other federal, state, and local funding sources to work towards restoration and protection of areas not currently covered directly by the work of USACE.
While the TCRMP does not provide or guarantee funding to projects, it is designed to demonstrate funding need and cost estimates for proposed projects. Project initiatives range in status from conceptual to in progress, so actual costs may vary once implementation begins.
The GLO’s four-year planning process engaged hundreds of coastal planners, community leaders and decision-makers, coastal scientists and engineers, ports and navigation professionals, technical experts, resource agency and regulatory staff members, and other key stakeholders as part of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC).
For more information, visit www.glo.texas.gov/crmp.