If you witness illegal discharges, dumping, or mining, following these guidelines will ensure the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) can act on evidence you provide. Make sure you follow proper procedures.
After Harvey, fresh sand deposits several feet thick and foul water lined the shores of the west fork of the San Jacinto adjacent to Kingwood.
If you want TCEQ to use your information in an enforcement case, you cannot remain anonymous.
You must complete a notarized affidavit. Your contact information will be confidential. But understand that you must be willing to testify in any formal enforcement hearing.
You may not enter property of another person to document a violation. No trespass.
Follow the Commission’s procedures and protocols outlined in the link above.
If the Commission initiates an investigation, you must sign affidavits authenticating the information you provided.
You must confirm that you followed TCEQ protocols and procedures.
If the case proceeds to a formal hearing or trial, you will be required to testify. You must explain information you provided, and you may be cross-examined by the defendant’s attorney. This could include questions regarding your testimony and motives.
Given all the different types of complaints and evidence people submit, procedures can get quite complex. For instance, if you submit water samples, the TCEQ has specific requirements for testing and chain of custody.
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Harvey-SanJac_3-e1546743219721.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000&ssl=110001500adminadmin2019-01-05 20:29:252019-01-05 20:55:04How to Submit Evidence that Gets Results from the TCEQ
Good news: The Emergency West Fork Dredging Project is still active. The government allocated funds for the project before the shutdown. Also, because FEMA designated it an emergency, it enjoys preferred status. Dredges are still dredging.
Bad news: Every other Lake Houston area flood mitigation project that depends on federal dollars is on hold.
Watershed study? 10 months and still waiting for approval.
Additional gates for Lake Houston? Hit the pause button.
More upstream detention. Deep freeze.
Additional dredging? Why rush it?
The Really Bad News
I’d say that’s the end of the story, but it’s not. Tonight the Associated Press reports that President Trump warns the shutdown could continue for months or years. Even considering the obvious hyperbole, I shudder to think of employees’ reactions. At a certain point, people put families and futures in front of jobs that pay zero. Maybe Trump could hold out for years. But a GS-7 with a bachelor’s degree and student loans to pay off? Someone making $35K per year?
The reason most people take a pay cut to go into government service is because it’s a steady gig. But yank that paycheck out from under them. Woooooosh! That’s the sound of talent and institutional knowledge creating a vacuum as it sprints out the door.
Rebraining Projects
A prolonged government shutdown will turn the Mo down Low. Lose momentum and you have to spend more energy to regain it. You lose time. You lose money. You lose talent. And when it’s over, you have to rebrain projects. Recruitment. Training. Getting people back up to speed. Clearing out backlogs…that could really last years.
Sweating Details and Bullets
So while the mouth bar project is on hold, dredging behind the mouth bar continues. Officials hoped they could save $18 million in demobilization and remobilization fees by having the mouth bar project ready to start when the Emergency Project finished. But that window is rapidly narrowing. Back in October, when we thought we had six months to work out details, everyone felt comfy and confident. Now with three months left, officials are sweating the details while residents sweat bullets. Here’s why.
Problems Likely to Migrate Downstream
As I discussed in yesterday’s post, River Grove Park has experienced greater-than-usual flooding. Crests usually experienced every other year now happen once every other month. The river has crested over 50 feet six times in 11 months. That’s likely due to the backwater effect created by “Sand Island” (as dredgers have named it). Sand Island virtually blocks off the river creating a backwater effect. See its location relative to River Grove below.
The Army Corps has nicknamed the giant blockage immediately downstream from River Grove Park “Sand Island.”
The next picture shows how this massive dune virtually blocks the entire West Fork. I took the picture two weeks after Harvey. During floods, when water moves quickly, Sand Island has created a ten-foot difference between water upstream and downstream.
Sand Island causes higher-than-normal floods at greater -than -normal frequencies because of backwater effects.
Great Lakes Dredge and Dock, the Corps’ prime contractor on this job has finished dredging through the side bar at River Grove . Now they are attacking Sand Island (see below).
The focus of dredging has moved from the side bar at River Grove to Sand Island. Once removed, the flooding problems at River Grove will likely migrate downstream.
As they remove this blockage, downstream residents in Atascocita Point have reported water rising higher in their yards during floods. Once dredgers completely remove Sand Island, flooding problems will likely migrate downstream to the next major blockage, the mouth bar.
The mouth bar virtually blocks the West Fork where it enters Lake Houston. It stretches from Kings Point to Atascocita Point, but is not within the scope of the current dredging project. Expansion of the scope has been halted by the government shutdown.
However, there’s a big difference between Sand Island and the Mouth Bar.
Parks, vacant land, and golf courses surround Sand Island.
People, kids and homes surround the Mouth Bar.
Let’s pray that the government shutdown ends quickly. In this area, government can really make a huge and important difference – immediately.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 1/5/2019
494 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Locator.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000&ssl=110001500adminadmin2019-01-05 03:25:172019-01-06 12:24:47How Government Shutdown Affects All Lake Houston Area Flood Mitigation Projects
Three months after supposedly reaching an agreement in principle to remove the mouth bar, FEMA, the Army Corps, the State and City still have no agreement in writing. From Day 1 of negotiations, FEMA and the Corps have consistently said they can’t address pre-Harvey conditions. I’m beginning to believe them. How did we reach this impasse and how can we move forward?
FEMA’s Dilemma
The Stafford Act (FEMA’s enabling legislation) prohibits FEMA from funding repairs not directly related to Harvey. But, because the City conducted no surveys after the Memorial or Tax Day Floods, it cannot prove how much came from Harvey. Yet it has asked FEMA and the Corps to remove the entire mouth bar.
The City’s Dilemma
The City of Houston has done little to maintain Lake Houston, especially the West Fork of the San Jacinto near Kingwood. Lack of regular surveys and maintenance dredging make city officials look like they’re trying to get others to clean up their mess.
Historical Perspective
Decades ago, after the 1994 flood, the City hired Brown & Root to study sedimentation in the lake, which includes about 13 miles of the East and West Forks of the San Jacinto. Engineers recommended surveying the river after every major storm and dredging when necessary to reduce the risk of flooding. They even pinpointed where sediment would likely build up and pointed out that the West Fork was capturing 42% of all the sediment coming into the lake (see page 9). However, before Harvey, the City never dredged and rarely conducted surveys – decisions that haunt us today.
The mouth bar. Sand, in part from the mines, has almost totally blocked the West Fork where it meets Lake Houston. Unofficial before/after measurements show that as much as ten feet was deposited in this area during Harvey (five below water/five above).
Sedimentation: Danger that Can No Longer Be Ignored
One insidious aspect of sedimentation is its invisibility. Like gunk in pipes, you can’t see it – until water backs up and floods your home. That’s exactly what happened to thousands of homes during Harvey. The problem which had slowly built up for years, went from sub-acute to critical almost overnight because of the massive volume of sediment deposited during Harvey.
That brings us to our present impasse.
No News is Bad News
The City, FEMA, the Army Corps and the State have argued about this for at least six months. We thought they reached agreement in principle to remove the mouth bar three months ago. But still no official announcements have been made. Sadly, it didn’t have to come to this:
If only the City had followed the advice of the experts it hired…
If only the City had maintained its property…
If only the City could document how much Harvey contributed to the blockage…
If only the City had acted years ago to limit sand mining in the floodway of the river…
…we could have been working on the mouth bar already. Instead…
Problem Becoming Demonstrably Worse
In the 80 years since we started keeping records on the West Fork at US59, the river has crested over 50 feet 40 times – once every other year. But in the last 11 months, floods have reached that height SIX times – more than once every other month. We topped 50 feet in the latest flood just minutes ago. All resulted from relatively minor rains. This sudden surge in frequency did not result from global warming.
Is it all a statistical fluke? Wetter than usual weather? El Niño? Upstream development? Perhaps some of each. But one would have to be blind to dismiss the sediment buildup in the river. A delta is marching steadily downstream, creating blockages that back water up.
The West Fork just before Kingwood’s annexation in 1996 and after Harvey. Comparison shows advancing sediment buildups blocking the river.
The High Cost of Ignoring Expert Advice and Routine Maintenance
Harvey brought the high cost of ignoring expert advice and routine maintenance into sharp focus. The lack of a survey that could have been conducted in a few days is costing the City months of delays and potentially tens of millions of dollars in State and Federal assistance. This exposes hundreds of thousands of residents to needless flood risk and undermines property values.
What Needs to Happen
All of this underscores the need to budget for and maintain one’s own property. Drainage fees, which we just put a lock box around, should easily handle the City’s portion of dredging projects and surveys.
How do we break this impasse?
FEMA and the Corps need to restore the conveyance of the river that existed before Harvey. Estimate it using available evidence like aerial photos and satellite images. We’ll never have an exact figure. So quit using that as an excuse to put hundreds of thousands of people at risk. Let’s get started with dredging what we can. Legally.
In return, the City could commit to annual river surveys that document the status of the river before each hurricane season.
I’m not a mediator and I’m not the Mayor, but that sounds like a fair compromise that can protect residents as well as officials on both sides of this negotiation.
Floods don’t happen as often as police or fire emergencies, but when they do, they affect hundreds of thousands of people in ways that can be just as life altering. This is a public safety issue. Let’s go. Reach an agreement, please!
These are my opinions on matters of public policy, protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP statute of the Great State of Texas.
Posted by Bob Rehak on January 4, 2019
493 Days since Hurricane Harvey
https://i0.wp.com/reduceflooding.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/SideBySide.jpg?fit=1440%2C590&ssl=15901440adminadmin2019-01-04 00:14:212019-01-04 09:18:39Why the City Needs Regular River Surveys and Maintenance Dredging
How to Submit Evidence that Gets Results from the TCEQ
If you witness illegal discharges, dumping, or mining, following these guidelines will ensure the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) can act on evidence you provide. Make sure you follow proper procedures.
Rules of Evidence
TCEQ procedures pertain to the way you gather, collect, label, and document evidence. This link contains a great deal of information about the process, requirements, etc.
A brief summary follows:
Given all the different types of complaints and evidence people submit, procedures can get quite complex. For instance, if you submit water samples, the TCEQ has specific requirements for testing and chain of custody.
For Photographic Evidence
Photos and videos have specific procedures. Make sure you include:
If shooting film, also make sure you include negatives and prints.
How to Submit Evidence
It takes time and money to investigate cases. Following these guidelines ensures that that time and money will not be wasted.
You can contact TCEQ 24 hours every day about complaints. To submit a complaint under their jurisdiction :
Posted by Bob Rehak on 1/5/2019
495 Days after Hurricane Harvey
How Government Shutdown Affects All Lake Houston Area Flood Mitigation Projects
Good news: The Emergency West Fork Dredging Project is still active. The government allocated funds for the project before the shutdown. Also, because FEMA designated it an emergency, it enjoys preferred status. Dredges are still dredging.
Bad news: Every other Lake Houston area flood mitigation project that depends on federal dollars is on hold.
The Really Bad News
I’d say that’s the end of the story, but it’s not. Tonight the Associated Press reports that President Trump warns the shutdown could continue for months or years. Even considering the obvious hyperbole, I shudder to think of employees’ reactions. At a certain point, people put families and futures in front of jobs that pay zero. Maybe Trump could hold out for years. But a GS-7 with a bachelor’s degree and student loans to pay off? Someone making $35K per year?
The reason most people take a pay cut to go into government service is because it’s a steady gig. But yank that paycheck out from under them. Woooooosh! That’s the sound of talent and institutional knowledge creating a vacuum as it sprints out the door.
Rebraining Projects
A prolonged government shutdown will turn the Mo down Low. Lose momentum and you have to spend more energy to regain it. You lose time. You lose money. You lose talent. And when it’s over, you have to rebrain projects. Recruitment. Training. Getting people back up to speed. Clearing out backlogs…that could really last years.
Sweating Details and Bullets
So while the mouth bar project is on hold, dredging behind the mouth bar continues. Officials hoped they could save $18 million in demobilization and remobilization fees by having the mouth bar project ready to start when the Emergency Project finished. But that window is rapidly narrowing. Back in October, when we thought we had six months to work out details, everyone felt comfy and confident. Now with three months left, officials are sweating the details while residents sweat bullets. Here’s why.
Problems Likely to Migrate Downstream
As I discussed in yesterday’s post, River Grove Park has experienced greater-than-usual flooding. Crests usually experienced every other year now happen once every other month. The river has crested over 50 feet six times in 11 months. That’s likely due to the backwater effect created by “Sand Island” (as dredgers have named it). Sand Island virtually blocks off the river creating a backwater effect. See its location relative to River Grove below.
The next picture shows how this massive dune virtually blocks the entire West Fork. I took the picture two weeks after Harvey. During floods, when water moves quickly, Sand Island has created a ten-foot difference between water upstream and downstream.
Great Lakes Dredge and Dock, the Corps’ prime contractor on this job has finished dredging through the side bar at River Grove . Now they are attacking Sand Island (see below).
As they remove this blockage, downstream residents in Atascocita Point have reported water rising higher in their yards during floods. Once dredgers completely remove Sand Island, flooding problems will likely migrate downstream to the next major blockage, the mouth bar.
However, there’s a big difference between Sand Island and the Mouth Bar.
Let’s pray that the government shutdown ends quickly. In this area, government can really make a huge and important difference – immediately.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 1/5/2019
494 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Why the City Needs Regular River Surveys and Maintenance Dredging
Three months after supposedly reaching an agreement in principle to remove the mouth bar, FEMA, the Army Corps, the State and City still have no agreement in writing. From Day 1 of negotiations, FEMA and the Corps have consistently said they can’t address pre-Harvey conditions. I’m beginning to believe them. How did we reach this impasse and how can we move forward?
FEMA’s Dilemma
The City’s Dilemma
The City of Houston has done little to maintain Lake Houston, especially the West Fork of the San Jacinto near Kingwood. Lack of regular surveys and maintenance dredging make city officials look like they’re trying to get others to clean up their mess.
Historical Perspective
Decades ago, after the 1994 flood, the City hired Brown & Root to study sedimentation in the lake, which includes about 13 miles of the East and West Forks of the San Jacinto. Engineers recommended surveying the river after every major storm and dredging when necessary to reduce the risk of flooding. They even pinpointed where sediment would likely build up and pointed out that the West Fork was capturing 42% of all the sediment coming into the lake (see page 9). However, before Harvey, the City never dredged and rarely conducted surveys – decisions that haunt us today.
Sedimentation: Danger that Can No Longer Be Ignored
One insidious aspect of sedimentation is its invisibility. Like gunk in pipes, you can’t see it – until water backs up and floods your home. That’s exactly what happened to thousands of homes during Harvey. The problem which had slowly built up for years, went from sub-acute to critical almost overnight because of the massive volume of sediment deposited during Harvey.
That brings us to our present impasse.
No News is Bad News
The City, FEMA, the Army Corps and the State have argued about this for at least six months. We thought they reached agreement in principle to remove the mouth bar three months ago. But still no official announcements have been made. Sadly, it didn’t have to come to this:
Problem Becoming Demonstrably Worse
In the 80 years since we started keeping records on the West Fork at US59, the river has crested over 50 feet 40 times – once every other year. But in the last 11 months, floods have reached that height SIX times – more than once every other month. We topped 50 feet in the latest flood just minutes ago. All resulted from relatively minor rains. This sudden surge in frequency did not result from global warming.
Is it all a statistical fluke? Wetter than usual weather? El Niño? Upstream development? Perhaps some of each. But one would have to be blind to dismiss the sediment buildup in the river. A delta is marching steadily downstream, creating blockages that back water up.
The High Cost of Ignoring Expert Advice and Routine Maintenance
Harvey brought the high cost of ignoring expert advice and routine maintenance into sharp focus. The lack of a survey that could have been conducted in a few days is costing the City months of delays and potentially tens of millions of dollars in State and Federal assistance. This exposes hundreds of thousands of residents to needless flood risk and undermines property values.
What Needs to Happen
All of this underscores the need to budget for and maintain one’s own property. Drainage fees, which we just put a lock box around, should easily handle the City’s portion of dredging projects and surveys.
How do we break this impasse?
FEMA and the Corps need to restore the conveyance of the river that existed before Harvey. Estimate it using available evidence like aerial photos and satellite images. We’ll never have an exact figure. So quit using that as an excuse to put hundreds of thousands of people at risk. Let’s get started with dredging what we can. Legally.
In return, the City could commit to annual river surveys that document the status of the river before each hurricane season.
The City also could commit to a regular maintenance dredging program to keep sediment at a sub-acute level. The annual surveys will determine the exact amounts and frequencies.
The City could also throw its weight behind legislative efforts to move sand mines out of the floodway, where they contribute to levels of sedimentation far beyond natural rates.
I’m not a mediator and I’m not the Mayor, but that sounds like a fair compromise that can protect residents as well as officials on both sides of this negotiation.
Floods don’t happen as often as police or fire emergencies, but when they do, they affect hundreds of thousands of people in ways that can be just as life altering. This is a public safety issue. Let’s go. Reach an agreement, please!
These are my opinions on matters of public policy, protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP statute of the Great State of Texas.
Posted by Bob Rehak on January 4, 2019
493 Days since Hurricane Harvey