The Kingwood Middle School reconstruction project is nearing completion. The new stormwater detention basins are complete, grassed in, and virtually fenced. The athletic fields have been laid out. And the track is under construction. The photos below show what the project looked like on 6/9/23. Humble ISD has created an architectural gem in the new […]
For a variety of reasons, many new developments seem to be “on pause” these days. Developers clear and grade land. Then it may sit undeveloped for months or even years. This leaves exposed soil unprotected by vegetation. That makes it more susceptible to erosion for longer periods. And the eroded soil can clog streams and […]
On June 6, 2023, Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) recommended to Commissioners Court a flood-mitigation and disaster-relief project list totaling $825 million. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) allocated the funds to Harris County via the Texas General Land Office (GLO). The projects will require another $145 million in local-match funds […]
Harris County Flood Control District’s (HCFCD) Woodridge Village Excavation and Removal contract for 500,000 cubic yards with Sprint Sand & Clay is almost one-quarter complete. Sprint excavated approximately another 9,000 cubic yards in May (5.8 acre feet). That’s almost double the monthly minimum and brings the total up to 123,882 cubic yards. Stormwater from Woodridge Village flooded […]
Harris County reports obtained by investigative journalist Wayne Dolcefino and shared with ReduceFlooding.com raise serious concerns about the integrity of the 2022 election. A video released by Dolcefino on 6/1/23 summarized some of the problems: “The release of these documents details a horrific story of incompetence,” said Dolcefino. And that was in an election where… […]
According to the National Hurricane Center, a tropical depression has formed in the northeast Gulf of Mexico on this, the first day or hurricane season. The NHC gave the storm only a 10% chance of formation just two days ago. They upped that to 50% this morning. This afternoon, it turned into a tropical depression […]
The definition of “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) is changing again thanks to a new ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court. It could put half of the nation’s wetlands in peril and that could significantly affect flooding. The Ping-Pong Match over Wetland Protection I first started covering the definition of WOTUS in January of this […]
Hurricane season starts this week. Offsetting factors, some of which would call for an above-normal hurricane season and others of which would call for a below-normal season, led forecasters at the NOAA Climate Prediction Center to split the difference in their seasonal outlook. They are giving almost equal probabilities to average, above-average, and below-average seasons. […]
Third in a Three Part Series on ChatGPT and Flood Control My first post on ChatGPT and flood control talked about its prodigious strengths in outlining a range of mitigation solutions. My second talked about using ChatGPT to drill down further into the subject matter. It excels at generating high-level summaries of issues. And it […]
Second in a series on ChatGPT and Flood-Mitigation Recommendations Yesterday, I posted ChatGPT’s recommendations on the most effective techniques for flood control. The artificial-intelligence research tool compiled an impressive list, later validated by experts in the field. But they all said the recommendations were high-level. So I conducted another test in which I drilled down […]