HCFCD SAFER Study will Cover Half of Harris County
8/6/25 – Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) has initiated a large-scale study called SAFER that will involve 11 of the county’s 23 watersheds and benefit two others – Addicks and Barker.
SAFER stands for “Solutions for Advancing Floodplain Evaluation and Resilience.” The map below shows the study area. The study does not include the northern and eastern portions of the county.
Link to Flood Tunnels
The highlighted area comprises many of the watersheds previously discussed as candidates for flood tunnels.
This six-minute video explains the scope, goals and timetable of the study. (And it prominently mentions flood tunnels.) However, it also mentions integrating those with other flood-mitigation solutions.
Target: Federal Funding
A study of this scope is much broader than normal. One of the major goals is to achieve federal funding. Toward that end, the study is targeting Congresses annual Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) in 2028 as the deadline.
HCFCD is following a rigorous process outlined in Section 203 of WRDA that allows local agencies to follow Army Corps procedures and qualify for federal funding at the end of the road, as if the Corps had developed the study.
The goal: to make the county more resilient to future flood events.
Disciplined Process
The process will help ensure the U.S. Congress approves the SAFER Study recommendations, which will require large-scale federal funding to implement.
The study will evaluate established flood risk reduction measures, such as increasing channel capacity and constructing stormwater detention basins, as well as large-scale stormwater tunnels.
While the SAFER Study is a new feasibility study, it builds on current Flood Control District initiatives and data-driven projects already completed. This includes current and past capital projects, MAAPnext (ongoing) and completed investigations of stormwater conveyance tunnels.
The SAFER study will result in a Draft Feasibility Report that evaluates the costs, benefits, and viability of proposed flood-risk management solutions. The accompanying Environmental Impact Statement, led by USACE, will assess any potential environmental impacts of the proposed solutions.
Estimated Timeline
Key milestones include:
- Public scoping meetings in summer 2025
- Development and evaluation of alternatives through 2026
- The release of a Draft Feasibility Report and Draft Environmental Impact Statement in 2026–2027
HCFCD hopes to submit the Final Report to the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works in 2027 and secure Congressional funding the following year.
Upcoming Virtual Meetings
HCFCD will hold community engagement meetings in each phase. Two upcoming virtual meetings will give you a chance to comment:
Tuesday, August 19, 2025
from 6 – 7 p.m.
Zoom Meeting Registration
Wednesday, August 20, 2025
from 12 – 1 p.m.
Zoom Meeting Registration
Posted by Bob Rehak on 8/6/2025
2899 Days since Hurricane Harvey
