According to Harris County Flood Control District’s (HCFCD) latest flood-bond update, 19 of 19 active capital improvement construction projects are now in Democratic precincts (1, 2 and 4). None is in the County’s lone Republican-led Precinct 3, the county’s largest. Moreover, the update also shows that the San Jacinto watershed now has NO active maintenance […]
The dangers of street flooding can be costly. We’ve all read about people who drown while driving through flooded underpasses. But other dangers exist, too. Costly ones. On Tuesday 1/24/23, the Lake Houston Area received a 5-year rain. Streets flooded throughout the area because storm sewers are generally designed to carry 1- to 2-year rains. […]
Between 1:00 and 3:00 PM on 1/24/23, approximately 3.6 inches of rain fell over Royal Pines in southeast Montgomery County. According to Atlas-14 rainfall tables, that qualifies as a 5-year rainfall event. But floodwaters from White Oak creek approached the edge of the 100-year floodplain. And missing silt fences let sediment escape into the wetlands […]
The National Weather Service and Harris County warn of a severe weather threat for Tuesday. Harris County Meteorologist Jeff Lindner warns that severe thunderstorms, some of which could turn into tornados are likely with heavy rainfall, and gusty winds across SE Texas Tuesday. The National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center also warns of the potential […]
The San Jacinto Regional Flood Planning Group (SJRFPG) submitted its final recommendations to the Texas Water Development Board on January 10. The 316-page report includes recommendations on floodplain management evaluation, strategies and projects; the plan’s impacts; administration, regulatory and legislative recommendations; and financing. I discussed the floodplain projects and impacts when I reviewed the draft […]
On January 10, 2023, McGehee ☆ Chang, Landgraf, Feiler responded to the government’s most recent motion in the Addicks Barker Downstream “Takings” Case on behalf of the plaintiffs. Their response included a counter-motion against the government. Here is a copy of their motion. Each side will have a chance to file one more round of written […]
The sky darkens. Thunder grows louder. Suddenly, the rain comes down so hard you can barely see. Soon, water starts coming over the curb toward your house. Your weather radio crackles with warnings. And when it’s over, the stormwater has stopped just feet from your door. Close call! But then you wonder. How intense was […]
One third of Harris County is now impervious cover. According to the Harris County Infrastructure Resilience Team, green roofs are one of several tools that can help mitigate flooding by converting impervious cover back into green space. Also known as ‘vegetated roofs’ or ‘living roofs,’ they can reduce runoff by soaking up part of the rainfall […]
On October 28, Royal Pines flooded a neighbor on less than an inch of rain. Two months later, on December 29th, the same thing happened again. The video below provided by the homeowner shows the volume of water funneled across her property by the developer. This video and the previous one from October demonstrate the […]
On January 9, 2023, FEMA released a Simplified Procedures policy for Public Assistance grants to speed up recovery for applicants. Small projects are now defined as those up to $1 million. The new policy should reduce administrative burdens and enable communities to recover more quickly after presidentially declared events by streamlining documentation requirements. FEMA will […]