Two More West Fork Sand Mine Breaches Discovered

6/9/24 – After posting about four West Fork sand mine breaches just last night, I discovered two more this morning. Both were at the end of White Sands Drive, which branches off of Sorters-McClellan Road a half mile south of Kingwood Drive.

The first was at the Eagle Sorters mine north of White Sands. Operators have opened up a pit to drain it directly into the river.

The second was at the Williams Brothers Mine south of White Sands. There, nature did the dirty work. The January flood caused large slabs of the mine’s dike to break off and fall into the river. The May flood finished the job. The dike separating the mine from the river is now completely gone … like a cool spring breeze.

According to historical satellite images in Google Earth, the Williams Brothers Mine last showed signs of activity shortly after Hurricane Harvey. It appears to have been abandoned, but the Montgomery County Appraisal District shows that William Brothers still owns the property.

The satellite image below from Google Earth shows the respective locations of the two mines.

*Eagle Mine (north) separated from Williams Brothers Mine (south) by White Sands Drive.* *Date 2/19/24* – *before May flood wiped out Williams Brothers dike.*

Eagle Sorters Mine Opens the Drain

Let’s look at the Eagle mine first.

*West Fork in foreground, silty pit in background*, *and trench running between them*.

*Reverse angle. Trench (center) leads from pit to West Fork at top of frame.*

*Enlargement shows tracks of heavy equipment, such as an excavator, between the piles of loose dirt next to road.*

This breach appears intentional.

Nature Finishes Job Started in January at Williams Mine

At the Williams Brothers Mine during May floods, nature finished the job it started in January. As reported in February, half of the dike that separated the mine from the river partially collapsed in the late January flood.

Giant slabs peeled off, taking huge trees and half of the mine’s perimeter road with them.

river bank collapses at Williams Brothers Mine — *Williams Brothers dike after January Flood.*

No you see it. Now you don’t.

*Reverse angle.* *During May flood, dike disappeared altogether. Looking SW from over pit toward West Fork, which cuts diagonally through upper right.*

*Looking downriver. West Fork on right, mine on left.* *Breach is approximately 600 feet long.*

This wasn’t a pit capture in the traditional sense. At least not yet. It was more like nature making a hostile corporate takeover.

As you can see in the satellite image below, the Willliams Brothers mine sits on a point bar. The river has forced its way into the pit and will almost certainly cut the rest of the way through it in some future flood. See red arrow below.

*River has now cut its way into pit, but has some distance to go before exiting other side.*

We will need to watch this closely in future floods.

Consequences

In recent weeks, we’ve talked extensively about excessive sedimentation that blocks drainage ditches farther down the West Fork, potential flooding impacts and the high cost of remediation.

A study by Jacobs in Australia discusses many other dangers of floodplain mining. They include channel widening, undercutting of banks, and increased erosion and sediment transport.

However, understand that this isn’t floodplain mining per se. It’s floodway mining.

Although part of the Eagle mine extends into the floodplain, most of it sits within the floodway. And the entire Williams Brothers Mine sits within the floodway.

That means the mines are in the main body of the current during floods. So when the SJRA releases 72,000 CFS, look out below!

The red arrow in the map above shows the likely centerline of the current when the pit is finally captured. That means the center of the river will be a quarter mile closer to the new high $75 million high school shown in the lower center of the satellite image.

Part of the floodplain already crosses Sorters-McClellan Road. And FEMA has advised that the new flood maps, when released, will show the floodplains expanding 50% on average.

If that happens here, floodwaters will lap at the front door of the new high school. Oh well. It only cost $75 million dollars or so. And it isn’t even finished yet. But TACA says we need the sand to support growth.

If you find this disturbing, complain to the TCEQ.

As they say in high school, there’s a learning opportunity here. This is why we should keep sand mines farther back from rivers. It’s a public safety issue. End of lecture.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 6/9/24

2476 Days since Hurricane Harvey

The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.