Role of Industrial-Scale Sand Mining in Lake Houston Area Flooding

4/9/2026 – Another “lesson learned” about flooding since Hurricane Harvey has been role of sedimentation from industrial-scale sand mining upstream from Lake Houston. It can only be appreciated from the air.

May 2024 flood at Hallett Mine on West Fork — *May 2024 flood at Hallett Mine on San Jacinto West Fork* *near Northpark Drive in Kingwood.* *Note the difference in water quality in the ditch.*

Few, if any, urban watersheds have such dense clusters of sand mines directly upstream from their water reservoirs in major river channels. This is one of the most distinctive features of flooding in the San Jacinto Watershed.

The mines not only contribute to flooding in an outsized way, they impair water quality, damage the environment and harm wildlife.

Chronic Sediment Mobilization During Floods

Most erosion happens during floods. And most sediment moves during floods.

More than 20 square miles of sand mines in the floodway and floodplains of the San Jacinto immediately upstream from Lake Houston provide a ready source of exposed sediment, ripe for mobilization.

I have photographed:

Sand mines pumping sediment over and through dikes
Dike failures.
Rivers capturing sand pits during floods
Mines dumping sediment directly into rivers

See a small sampling of photos below.

one of the prettiest places in texas — *LMI sand mine on West Fork*

breach out of sand pit — *Breach of sand-mine dike into San Jacinto West Fork*

*Breach of Triple PG mine dike into Caney Creek in East Fork Watershed*.

Hallett spill — *Mine dumping sediment in West Fork*

Hallett Mine — *Same mine overflowing onto neighboring properties and then West Fork*

New Sand Mining BMPs needed to control sediment pollution. — *Pit capture at Hallett Mine. River now flows through mine instead of around it.*

*FM2090 is now threatened by the East Fork which has rerouted itself through an abandoned sand mine.*

*Pipelines carrying highly volatile liquids undercut by erosion from sand mine on West Fork.*

*East Fork Sand Mine undercutting more pipelines and leaking into Caney Creek*

*Abandoned sand mine equipment leaking oil into West Fork*

abandoned dredge — *Rusting dredge in abandoned sand mine in Humble on North Houston Avenue*

white water caused by flaunting regulations — *Confluence of Spring Creek and West Fork in August 2019. TCEQ cited Liberty Mines for discharging 56 million gallons of white sludge into the West Fork.*

*Sand freshly deposited during Harvey blocked West Fork 90%, according to Army Corps.*

west fork mouth bar before dredging — *Farther downriver, a mouth bar blocked the West Fork backing water up into thousands of homes and businesses. Army Corps has since dredged this.*

The Houston area certainly isn’t the only place in the U.S. with alluvial floodplain mining. But rarely, if ever, do such practices take place with such impunity so close to the water supply for two million people.

For More Information

See the sand-mining page of this website for Best Practices in the U.S. and abroad; academic studies on sand mining; Texas sand mining laws/regulations; observations; and tax appraisal practices. An investigation found that virtually all of the sand mines shown above are in Montgomery County which taxed them as ag- and timberland rather than depleting assets.

Also search on the tag “sand mining” to find more than 300 posts containing thousands of pictures of mining practices in the San Jacinto River Basin.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 4/9/26

3145 Days since 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.

Chronic Sediment Mobilization During Floods

For More Information

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