4/6/26 – One of the biggest “lessons learned” from Harvey is that coordinated Joint Reservoir Operations are crucial. The San Jacinto River Basin has two reservoirs controlled by dams. But coordinating their operation to reduce flooding remains elusive after 53 years. The San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA) finished the Lake Conroe dam in 1973, but […]
4/5/26 – Today’s “lesson learned” from almost nine years of research into flooding is about the counterintuitive “Limitations of Multiple Small Detention Basins at Watershed Scale.” Research shows that hundreds of small ponds built during subdivision construction do little to reduce flooding at the watershed scale and may increase it in places. A 2009 National […]
4/4/26 – States, counties and communities across the U.S. prioritize flood mitigation over flood prevention, despite FEMA studies that have found prevention costs up to 5-6X less than correction. What types of costs? Examples of Mitigation Costs Examples of mitigation costs include: Examples of Prevention Costs/Strategies Examples of much more cost-effective Prevention Strategies include: While […]
4/3/26 – Engineers design infrastructure to handle certain amounts of rainfall. But: Infrastructure bottlenecks reveal themselves during extreme events. This is a universal phenomenon. Bridges, culverts, and channel constrictions control flood elevations behind them. You see this everywhere around the world. It’s a well studied phenomenon. Let’s look at two areas. Appalachia Appalachia has many […]
4/2/2026 – Across the U.S., fragmented governance increases flood risk by creating a patchwork quilt of local interests that makes regulation, compliance and enforcement difficult. One might think that our multi-level system of government – federal, state, county, city, improvement districts, etc. – creates defense in depth. In reality, each governmental entity plays by its […]
4/1/26 – In my quest to summarize the most important “lessons learned” since Hurricane Harvey, here’s Lesson #3: Floodplain Encroachment. Floodplain encroachment is consistently rated one of the most important drivers of flooding worldwide. Think about it. If people didn’t build in floodplains, no one would flood. But that’s only part of the story. Floodplain […]
3/31/26 – Since Hurricane Harvey, one of the dominant themes of more than 3,000 posts on this website has been outdated rainfall assumptions and how flood-infrastructure design lags those assumptions. That design lag contributes to flooding nationwide. How Infrastructure Design Lags Rainfall Estimates Almost nine years after Harvey, Harris County finally has new “draft” flood […]
3/30/31 – According to numerous engineering studies, the single most consistent, anthropogenic (human-created) driver of flooding worldwide is expansion of impervious cover related to urbanization. How Impervious Cover Contributes to Flooding Any area growing in population adds roads and rooftops. When stormwater falls on them, it runs off quickly, unlike when forests or grass covered […]
3/28/26 – At the San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA) Board Meeting on 3/26/26, HCFCD Executive Director Tina Petersen updated the board on a number of Lake Houston Area projects including the Kingwood Diversion Ditch. She confirmed it is fully funded – through construction. However, design of the Diversion Ditch Project has not yet started. It […]
3/27/26 – On 3/26/26, the San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA) board heard the results of a feasibility study about creating “dry-bottom dams” on Birch and Walnut Creeks. The creeks are far upstream in the Spring Creek watershed in Waller County and were being studied for potential flood-mitigation benefits. The board made no decision in the […]