News - Reduce Flooding

Three Kingwood Flood-Mitigation Projects on Harris County Commissioners Court Agenda Next Tuesday

Harris County Commissioners posted their agenda for next Tuesday and it has three Kingwood flood-mitigation projects on it.

Preliminary engineering and final design services for improvements to:
- Taylor Gully
- Kingwood Diversion Ditch
Purchase of Woodridge Village to build a stormwater detention basin in Montgomery County.

In case you plan to watch the meeting, all three items fall under Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD). Unless commissioners take items out of order, HCFCD projects usually come second on the agenda after Engineering. Below: exact text of each agenda item.

Agenda Item Text

Item 79:

Recommendation that the Harris County Flood Control District be authorized to negotiate an agreement for engineering services with IDCUS Inc. to provide preliminary engineering and final design services for improvements to Taylor Gully on HCFCD Unit G103-80-03.1. (San Jacinto River Watershed, Bond ID F-14, Project ID G103-80-03.1-E001, Precinct 4).

Item 82:

Recommendation that the Harris County Flood Control District be authorized to negotiate an agreement for engineering services with Neel-Schaffer, Inc. to provide preliminary engineering and final design services for improvements to the Kingwood Diversion Channel on HCFCD Unit G103-38-00. (San Jacinto River Watershed, Bond ID F-14, Project ID G103-38-00-E001, Precinct 4).

Item 92:

Recommendation that the Harris County Flood Control (District) be given authorization to decree that this District project serve a public purpose and public necessity require that the Harris County Real Property Division be directed to acquire two (2) fee simple tracts for the public project known as Woodridge Village Stormwater Detention Basin on behalf of the District, for the purpose of stormwater detention, in Montgomery County.

Woodridge Village Plan

If purchased from Perry Homes, HCFCD will swap part of Woodridge Village – the northern 77 acres of the 268 total – with the City of Houston. The City wants to build a wastewater treatment plant there and has negotiated with the County to swap land elsewhere in the City that HCFCD can use to reduce the cost of flood mitigation projects. The land reportedly includes parcels along Halls and Greens Bayous. This swap represents a win/win that helps protect more people throughout the City and County.

Scope of Engineering Studies Still Unclear

Contracts for the engineering studies have not yet been negotiated. However, we do have clues in the Kingwood Area Drainage Assessment final report about what these projects might include. Last October, HCFCD talked about:

Widening and deepening Taylor Gully to increase conveyance and/or building the detention pond in Woodridge Village, which empties into Taylor Gully. So Woodridge and Taylor Gully are related; what happens with one will affect the other.
Widening the Kingwood Diversion Ditch all the way from St. Martha’s Catholic Church at the county line to the San Jacinto West Fork. The Diversion Ditch project also included building a detention pond to ensure no adverse downstream impacts. Finally, the Drainage Assessment recommended splitting the ditch near Deer Ridge Park. The split would convey part of the floodwaters straight to the West Fork instead of routing all through River Grove Park via a circuitous route that takes them under Woodland Hills Drive which has washed out in the past.

Red line is Bens Branch. White Line is Kingwood Diversion Ditch. Green line shows where Kingwood Area Drainage Assessment recommended splitting flow as it approached West Fork at bottom of frame. Detention pond location not yet finalized.

No Recommendations Certain Yet

Nothing is certain yet. Commissioners Court deferred the Woodridge Village purchase five times last year – in April, May, July, August and September.

And as for the engineering work, a close reading of the text above shows that HCFCD has not yet negotiated contracts. HCFCD simply wants permission to negotiate the agreements. “Once we receive authorization to negotiate the agreements from Commissioners Court, we can meet with the consultants and develop the scope, schedule, and budget,” said Matt Zeve, Deputy Executive Director of HCFCD.

Regardless, this is good news and welcome progress for flood-weary Kingwood residents still struggling with recovery. These projects put us three steps closer to solutions.

For the full agenda, click here.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 2/5/2021

1256 Days after Hurricane Harvey and 505 After Imelda

Cleanup of Leaking Oil Tanks on Noxxe Lease by Forest Cove Little League Fields Complete

The Texas Railroad Commission has finished the cleanup of leaking oil storage tanks on the Noxxe Oil & Gas lease by the Forest Cove Little League fields. Several tanks remain, but they are empty and not leaking. According to a Railroad Commission spokesperson, another individual wants to take over the lease. That person intends to use the remaining tanks to help operate one or two wells that can still produce.

However, regarding a new producer, Gilbert Herrera, a spokesman for the Railroad Commission said, “I haven’t seen any P4 (transfer of wells) come through on the Noxxe wells in Harris County, so far.”

Before/After Pictures of Two Worst Areas

Worst Area

*Worst portion of lease on 1/20/2021 as cleanup started.*

*Same area 11 days later on 1/31/2021.* *Tanks on right have been left intentionally for now and are empty.*

Second Worst Area

*Same area on 1/31/2021 after cleanup.* *Note that five storage tanks are gone.*

Industrial Litter Still Clutters Site

A drilling rig, travel trailers, trucks, drill pipe and more still remain on the site. Peter Fisher, District Director for the Railroad Commission said the Commission planned to salvage/auction those items. However, he could make no promises. “Sometimes we’re successful and sometimes we’re not,” said Fisher. It depends on the market.

*Abandoned pipe and more still remains on Noxxe site.*

Abandoned Wells Still Not Plugged

Abandoned wells on this site have not yet been plugged. Neither have wells on the western portion of the site near Marina Drive and Aqua Vista. The Railroad Commission says that “depending on well prioritization, approvals, rig scheduling, and so on, we have an estimated time of 14 to 19 weeks” for plugging.

*Note oil sheen on ponding water next to San Jacinto West Fork, upper right.*

*Again, note the oily sheen on the water next to these abandoned wells. The San Jacinto West Fork/Lake Houston (lower left) provide water for 2 million people.*

Much Work Still Yet to Do

“All eligible orphan wells for plugging will be submitted to Austin for approval. From there and dependent on the factors mentioned before, we will plug as many of the wells as possible in that area,” said Gilbert Herrera of the Railroad Commission.

You can view all the “orphan wells” in that area on the Railroad Commission’s GIS map. An orphan well is one left behind by a bankrupt company.

Harvey forced Noxxe out of business. The company could not afford the cleanup. However, the Pew Foundation found that “So-called “orphan” oil and gas wells, which have been abandoned by defunct companies that cannot pay to plug them, are a growing problem in many states thanks to a recent slump in energy prices that has forced marginal operators out of business.”

“Nobody knows how many orphan and abandoned drilling sites litter farms, forests and backyards nationwide. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates there are more than a million of them. Unplugged wells can leak methane, an explosive gas, into neighborhoods and leach toxins into groundwater,” said Pew.

How many wells are there around the Humble salt dome? Hundreds, if not thousands. See below.

*Screen capture of Railroad Commission GIS database showing oil and gas wells in the Humble/Kingwood area.* *Note the circular outline that matches the shape of the Humble salt dome.*

The Railroad Commission GIS database lets you toggle software switches to see which wells are active, dry, plugged, orphaned, etc. Hovering your cursor over a dot shows the current status of the well.

Drillers frequently find oil and gas around salt domes. Salt, which is buoyant within the earth, fractures surrounding rock. Oil and gas seep into those fractures where it collects in commercial quantities. Is there any doubt why this area was so attractive to oil companies over the years? Here’s a history of the Humble Oil field which was discovered in 1904.

Once again, thanks to State Representative Dan Huberty for working with the Railroad Commission to accelerate cleanup of this area once the problems became known.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 2/3/2021

1254 Days after Hurricane Harvey

Mobilization Begins for Next Phase of Ben’s Branch Restoration

Last week, Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) began mobilizing for the restoration of the Ben’s Branch drainage ditch between Kingwood Drive and Rocky Woods. The work will involve removing accumulated sediment that has diminished the conveyance capacity of the ditch.

Engineers measure conveyance in terms of “level of service.” A 100-year level of service means that a ditch will convey a 100-year rain without overflowing. The Kingwood Drainage Analysis performed last year by HCFCD revealed that sediment had reduced the conveyance of Ben’s Branch to a 2-year level of service in places. This project will restore the ditch to its original contours.

*Looking north toward Rocky Woods. Most of the land between the two roads on either side of the ditch will be removed.* *Photo taken January 31, 2021.*

Looking WSW toward intersection of Kingwood Drive and West Lake Houston Parkway. Trucks will exit Ben’s Branch by the cell tower behind the old H-E-B. Note the orange walls of the new H-E-B in the upper left. Also note the new CVS still under construction in the upper right (yellow walls). Photo taken Jan. 3, 2021.

How trucks will exist the project. Looking northwest across two temporary bridges where the two parts of Ben’s Branch come together. Work will focus on the main part on the left. Photo taken Jan. 31, 2021.

*Temporary crossing for trucks coming down the west side of Ben’s Branch toward the exit on the east side by by old H-E-B. Photo taken January 31, 2021.*

Importance of Project

Along Ben’s Branch, as a result of flooding during Harvey:

Kingwood High School immediately to the west of this project flooded badly. The building suffered $67 million in damages. The school lost another $10 million in contents. Four thousand students had to be bused to another school for seven months.
Homes along both sides of the ditch flooded.
All four shopping centers in Kingwood’s Town Center flooded. Many businesses still have not returned.
Thirteen people died, included twelve seniors at Kingwood Village Estates. Six died from injuries sustained during evacuation and six from stress-related illnesses after returning and finding their homes destroyed.

*Looking south from northern end of project. Kingwood High School in upper right.*

History of Previous Ben’s Branch Projects since Harvey

Previously, HCFCD cleaned out the portion of Ben’s Branch from the YMCA on West Lake Houston Parkway north to Kingwood Drive. This is an extension of that project. HCFCD also cleaned out the portion from Northpark Drive to Kids in Action on Woodland Hills Drive. Flood Control could not obtain permission to excavate anything in the natural portion of Ben’s Branch between St. Martha’s Catholic School and Rocky Woods. However, HCFCD did clean out underbrush to let water flow faster through that area.

Scope of Current Work

For the current work between Kingwood Drive and Rocky Woods, HCFCD will start at the downstream end and work its way north. The work should take about five months. It involves removing more than 22,000 cubic yards of sediment, restoring the original banks of the ditch, and replacing a number of outfall pipes that have become blocked or damaged over time.

Once the work begins in earnest, HCFCD contractors will enter the northern side of the project at the end of Cedar Knolls and move south toward Kingwood Drive. There, they will exit the project behind the old H-E-B store. Crews will work around Kingwood High School start/stop times to reduce traffic snarls.

HCFCD considers this a maintenance project, not a capital-improvement project.

Related Projects in Kingwood

The Kingwood Drainage Analysis identified two much-needed capital improvement projects in Kingwood:

Expansion of the Diversion Ditch that runs from the new St. Martha Church down to Deer Ridge and River Grove Parks where it eventually enters the West Fork. The purpose of the Diversion Ditch project: to further reduce the flow of water into Ben’s Branch.
A project to reduce flooding along Taylor Gully. Two options have been discussed:
- Widening and deepening Taylor Gully itself
- Establishing a regional detention pond on the land owned by Perry Homes’ subsidiary Figure Four Partners.

HCFCD has not announced a timetable yet for either of those projects. Any work on Taylor Gully would depend on whether Harris County and the City are able to negotiate the purchase of Woodridge Village from Perry. Woodridge Village is the aborted development that twice flooded Elm Grove and North Kingwood Forest Villages in 2019.