In response, the SSPEED Center at Rice University has developed a new proposal to enhance coastal protection: the Galveston Bay Park Plan.
While existing infrastructure, such as the Galveston Seawall and a levee around Texas City, offers some defense against weaker storms, researchers warn these measures fall short when it comes to more powerful hurricanes.
The Galveston Bay Park Plan is designed to protect the western shoreline of Galveston Bay down to Texas City from devastating storm surge flooding. It would serve as a complementary project to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' proposed Ike Dike.
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Estimated to cost $7 billion, the plan blends storm surge protection with other uses such as navigation and recreation. One of its most innovative features is a gate system engineered to deploy across the Houston Ship Channel. The gate can float into place, fill with water, and sink to form a protective barrier. It's similar in concept to the retractable roof of a stadium, but used horizontally and on a massive scale.
"There's nothing like it in the world right now," said Jim Blackburn, co-director of the SSPEED Center. "We have very little defense at the moment. If a Category 4 or 5 hurricane were to hit, the result could be the worst economic and environmental disaster in U.S. history."
Blackburn emphasized the importance of protecting the Houston Ship Channel, home to one of the largest industrial complexes in the world.
"We're talking huge impacts," he said. "We have got to get a plan, and we have to get something buildable."
Given the multi-billion-dollar price tag, project leaders plan to implement the Galveston Bay Park Plan in phases and in collaboration with state and federal partners.
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