Harris County Flood Control District has essentially completed the first two batches of major maintenance projects along Cypress Creek tributaries and is ramping up for the third, according to District spokesperson Karen Hastings.
Current Batch to Cost about $10.8 Million
Construction costs for Batch 3 should total about $10.8 million. Batch 3 includes 11 channels. The projects within them will span 5.8 miles.
Batches 1-3 include channels within the Cypress Creek watershed for which the Flood Control District already has property rights. They were previously developed and altered. They do not generally include natural channels.
Below is a general list of the types of maintenance needed on these channels. However, not every channel will need all the types of maintenance listed.
Desilting is the removal of sediment deposited in channels after multiple rain events. The sediment can restrict the conveyance of channels leading to flooding. See below.
Location of Batch 3 Projects
Location of first project in Batch 3 circled in red. See photos below.
Photos Taken September 12, 2022
Looking west across K-124 at southern end of project. Street is Bridgeview Lane.Looking NW (upstream) across Bridgeview Lane. Father up the channel, still looking NW, at the current limit of construction. Because of the proximity of homes, it would be difficult to widen this channel if that became necessary in the future. Looking back toward SE from NW limit of construction several blocks up.
Altogether, projects such as this one will total almost 20 miles in Batches 1-3 alone. That should help reduce flood risk throughout the Cypress Creek watershed. Estimated completion for Batch 3 construction is Summer 2024.
But the major maintenance won’t stop there. HCFCD expects at least two more batches. The District will separately design each and put each out for construction bidding. Batch 5 will include major maintenance at multiple sites along Cypress Creek itself.
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/20220912-DJI_0496.jpg?fit=1200%2C799&ssl=17991200adminadmin2022-09-12 20:00:312022-09-12 20:03:33Batch 3 of Cypress Creek Major Maintenance Projects Ramping Up
A friend sent me a link to a Facebook post by a landscape/design company called Happy Gardens featuring this image of nature’s flood protection – the root systems of native grasses.
Said Happy Gardens, “This is why you don’t have to water native grasses. And their roots act like sponges to control flooding.”
It’s interesting to see the parts of these grasses that we never see. Note that some of these roots have been folded back and tied up to minimize their height for display purposes! Some are deeper than the lady is tall!
Providing Multiple Defenses Against Floods
Such grasses help reduce flooding several ways. They:
Slow water down in storms, decelerating runoff, and giving more runoff more time to soak in.
Absorb water like sponges.
Bind soil and reduce erosion.
Maintain more of an ecosystem’s natural hydrographic profile, which extends the time of accumulation and reduces flood peaks.
Runoff in natural areas spreads out over longer periods and has lower peaks.
No Watering and Less Maintenance
An additional plus: you never have to water them. They do look a little (pardon the pun) “rangy.” So some neighbors might object…until they flood.
The West Fork, by contrast, had been devastated by sand mining and erosion. The eroded sediment contributed to massive buildups of sand in the West Fork which reduced the conveyance of the river and also contributed to flooding.
Sometimes all you have to do to enjoy the protection of nature is just let it be. I hope this powerful image serves a reminder of that simple fact.
During Hurricane Harvey, the Humble ISD Ag Barn at Deer Ridge Park flooded badly. Shortly thereafter, the school board made a decision to move the ag barn facility to higher ground using money from the 2018 bond.
Since then, the district purchased 7 acres of land at the intersection of Ford and Mills Branch Roads in late 2018, broke ground in 2020, and constructed several new buildings.
Photos of New Facility
The district originally targeted 2021 for opening the facility. But permit issues with the City of Houston delayed the target opening to 2022. Don Thompson, the contractor for the facility, tells me it is now complete. However, as of last Sunday, two dumpsters still remained in the parking lot. Here are several aerial pictures of the beautiful new facility taken on Sunday 9/4/22.
Looking south toward North Kingwood ForestLooking SELooking NNWLooking NNW over detention pond in foreground.
The day before I took these pictures, the area received 2.5 inches of rain. It looks like the detention pond did its job. It absorbed the water and then released it slowly toward White Oak Creek so as not to overwhelm the creek’s capacity and cause flooding downstream.
If all new construction retained its rain, we would all be a lot better off from a flood perspective. Thanks to the Humble ISD for a beautiful new ag barn, which hopefully should make both students, their parents and the animals safer from flooding.
The animals at the old ag barn had to be evacuated several times recently because of rising floodwaters.
Reminder
Today is the statistical peak of hurricane season. We’ve dodged any hits so far this year, but there’s still a lot of weather yet to come.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/10/22
1838 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/20220904-DJI_0455.jpg?fit=1200%2C799&ssl=17991200adminadmin2022-09-10 11:55:192022-09-10 15:37:13New Humble ISD Ag Barn Construction Complete
Batch 3 of Cypress Creek Major Maintenance Projects Ramping Up
Harris County Flood Control District has essentially completed the first two batches of major maintenance projects along Cypress Creek tributaries and is ramping up for the third, according to District spokesperson Karen Hastings.
Current Batch to Cost about $10.8 Million
Construction costs for Batch 3 should total about $10.8 million. Batch 3 includes 11 channels. The projects within them will span 5.8 miles.
Batches 1-3 include channels within the Cypress Creek watershed for which the Flood Control District already has property rights. They were previously developed and altered. They do not generally include natural channels.
Below is a general list of the types of maintenance needed on these channels. However, not every channel will need all the types of maintenance listed.
Desilting is the removal of sediment deposited in channels after multiple rain events. The sediment can restrict the conveyance of channels leading to flooding. See below.
Location of Batch 3 Projects
Photos Taken September 12, 2022
Altogether, projects such as this one will total almost 20 miles in Batches 1-3 alone. That should help reduce flood risk throughout the Cypress Creek watershed. Estimated completion for Batch 3 construction is Summer 2024.
Two More Batches to Follow
But the major maintenance won’t stop there. HCFCD expects at least two more batches. The District will separately design each and put each out for construction bidding. Batch 5 will include major maintenance at multiple sites along Cypress Creek itself.
According to the March 2021 Flood Bond Update, HCFCD had allocated $60 million for all batches of Project CI-012.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/12/2022
1840 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Nature’s Flood Protection
A friend sent me a link to a Facebook post by a landscape/design company called Happy Gardens featuring this image of nature’s flood protection – the root systems of native grasses.
It’s interesting to see the parts of these grasses that we never see. Note that some of these roots have been folded back and tied up to minimize their height for display purposes! Some are deeper than the lady is tall!
Providing Multiple Defenses Against Floods
Such grasses help reduce flooding several ways. They:
No Watering and Less Maintenance
An additional plus: you never have to water them. They do look a little (pardon the pun) “rangy.” So some neighbors might object…until they flood.
Some time ago, another friend took me on a jet boat up the East and West Forks of the San Jacinto. The East Fork was plush with riparian vegetation.
The West Fork, by contrast, had been devastated by sand mining and erosion. The eroded sediment contributed to massive buildups of sand in the West Fork which reduced the conveyance of the river and also contributed to flooding.
Sometimes all you have to do to enjoy the protection of nature is just let it be. I hope this powerful image serves a reminder of that simple fact.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/11/2022
1839 Days since Hurricane Harvey
New Humble ISD Ag Barn Construction Complete
During Hurricane Harvey, the Humble ISD Ag Barn at Deer Ridge Park flooded badly. Shortly thereafter, the school board made a decision to move the ag barn facility to higher ground using money from the 2018 bond.
Since then, the district purchased 7 acres of land at the intersection of Ford and Mills Branch Roads in late 2018, broke ground in 2020, and constructed several new buildings.
Photos of New Facility
The district originally targeted 2021 for opening the facility. But permit issues with the City of Houston delayed the target opening to 2022. Don Thompson, the contractor for the facility, tells me it is now complete. However, as of last Sunday, two dumpsters still remained in the parking lot. Here are several aerial pictures of the beautiful new facility taken on Sunday 9/4/22.
The day before I took these pictures, the area received 2.5 inches of rain. It looks like the detention pond did its job. It absorbed the water and then released it slowly toward White Oak Creek so as not to overwhelm the creek’s capacity and cause flooding downstream.
If all new construction retained its rain, we would all be a lot better off from a flood perspective. Thanks to the Humble ISD for a beautiful new ag barn, which hopefully should make both students, their parents and the animals safer from flooding.
The animals at the old ag barn had to be evacuated several times recently because of rising floodwaters.
Reminder
Today is the statistical peak of hurricane season. We’ve dodged any hits so far this year, but there’s still a lot of weather yet to come.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 9/10/22
1838 Days since Hurricane Harvey