Perkins is quoted as saying, “…what [these sand mines] actually do – in contrast to what people were stating – is that they stored quite a bit of that floodwater and helped to prevent additional flooding …”
He explained how. “… For example, one 60-acre pit that’s 100 feet deep holds 6,000 acre feet of water. We’ve got some great potential capacity for off-channel storage that we could incorporate into our mining activities.” [Emphasis added twice.]
Did Mines Really Help Prevent Downstream Flooding?
Let’s suspend disbelief for a moment and examine Mr. Perkins’ theory.
The pits are already filled with water, so you only have a tiny portion of those acre feet available for storage during a flood! Not as much as he implies. Is the amount significant?
The difference between the top of the water and the top of the dikes is usually 10 to 20 feet at best. So let’s be generous to Mr. Perkins and assume 20. And let’s use the pit below as a test case. It’s 160 acres – about the size of Kingwood’s East End Park so people will have a reference.
Here’s what the same pit looks like from ground level.
Peak flow from Harvey would have filled this pit in less than 8 minutes.
How 8 Minutes was Calculated
The pit above is approximately 160 acres.
Assume 20 vertical feet are available to store water.
20 feet x 160 acres = 3200 acre feet of potential storage.
Now let’s calculate how fast Harvey would fill that up.
Approximately 150,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) flowed through this area.
There are 43,560 cubic feet in an acre foot. To find the fill rate…
150,000 cubic feet per second/43,560 = approximately 3.5 acre feet per second
To convert seconds to minutes, 3.5 x 60 = 210 acre feet per minute.
1600 acre feet of extra capacity/210 acre feet per minute = 7.6 minutes.
Thus, Harvey could have filled 20 feet in this pit in less than 8 minutes.
Contribution to Flood Reduction if You Put All Mines Together
However, if you consider all the pits on the West Fork together (20 square miles), they might have delayed flooding by 10 hours according to the same calculations. That’s starting to sound like a significant contribution. Barker and Addicks Reservoirs together store a total of 410,000 acre feet. West Fork sand mines occupy 12,800 acres. If every acre had 20 vertical feet of storage available, you would have 256,000 acre feet of storage. That might not stop Harvey but it could certainly help reduce flooding – especially in smaller floods.
Two Problems Need to Be Addressed with Perkins’ Theory
Mr. Perkins’ theory has two major flaws that would need to be addressed before it could be taken seriously by residents.
That would mean following best management practices common in other states and countries.
Ignoring Best Practices Contributes to Flooding
Regardless of storage POTENTIAL, if mines fail to follow best management practices, they are likely to do more harm than good.
Texas does not enforce best management practices common in other states, such as setbacks from rivers, sloping of dikes, and strengthening of dikes.
In Texas, we locate mines in floodways. And dikes are so thin that they often fail. Case in point: the mine we are talking about. There, dikes have been breached repeatedly. The river has cut through the pit and carried sediment downstream. That sediment then helped clog the river and create floods, not prevent them.
Rather than trying to deny what happened and change the debate, TACA should acknowledge what happened and work with citizen groups and government to create new regulations that protect the public as well as themselves.
What Really Happened in West Fork Mines During Harvey
Here’s what it looked like. This series of photos shows West Fork sand mines during Harvey on 8/30/17, one day after the peak. The river was flowing at only one-third of its peak on this day, according to the San Jacinto River Authority.
West Fork Sand Mine complex inundated by Harvey. Two of the three stockpiles in this photo were decimated by the flood. Sediment from the pits was also picked up by currents within them and carried downstream. Mine used in illustration above is in center.
Following are several close ups that show water breaching dikes, entering the mine and eroding areas within it and then carrying sediment downstream. All images taken on 8/30/17, courtesy of Google Earth and NASA.
Floodwater broke dikes, captured the sand pit and flowed straight through it.
Rapids within the mine.
Force of floodwater washed out road INSIDE mine.
Floodwater rushing out of forest into sand mine. It then flowed through and over dikes on the opposite side.
Exit Point for Floodwaters in this Mine
This next image shows the floodwaters exiting the mine on the far side after they scooped up sediment.
Floodwaters exit mine during Harvey. Photo taken on 8/30/2017.
Harvey was not the only flood when this has happened. The Memorial Day flood in 2015 and the Tax Day Flood in 2016 also saw breaches of the dikes. Those floods were much smaller and still caused problems, underscoring the need to modify permitting, regulations and best practices.
Exit point when river captured mine during Memorial Day flood in 2015.
Exit point two months later, on 7/31/2015. Breach was still unprepared and mine was leaking sediment into river.
By March of 2016, the breach had been repaired, but you can also see how sand was building up against it.
Less than a year later, when the flood waters had subsided, we can see the growth and orientation of the sand bars within the mine on the upper left in this 2017 image. This indicates that current within the mines during river capture was forcing sediment out of the mines.
I fail to see how this particular sand mine can prevent flooding. These pictures tell a different story. If the operator and TACA supported best management practices common in other states and countries, they might be able to help prevent flooding. But until that happens, I’m going to call Mr. Perkins’ claim a perfect-world generalization that has real-world limitations and exceptions.
And until TACA and the mines acknowledge the role they have played in flooding, residents will have a hard time emotionally accepting their presence in the community.
As always, these are my opinions on a matter of public interest. They are protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP statutes of the great State of Texas.
Posted by Bob Rehak on August 11, 2018
347 Days since Hurricane Harvey
00adminadmin2018-08-11 19:47:222018-08-11 20:03:21TACA Now Claims Sand Mines Helped to Prevent Flooding Downstream
A psychotherapist told me recently how the storm that brought people together is now dividing us.
Taking the bait, I asked, “How so?”
“People who didn’t flood want to get back to their normal lives. People who flooded can’t.”
“And?”
“The ones who didn’t flood just can’t fathom what it’s like for people who did. So they often say well-intentioned things that come off as insensitive.”
“Come in and make yourself right at home.”
“Really?”
“Really!”
So I asked friends who flooded. It’s true. Some want to scream inside even if they’re smiling on the outside.
One told me, “I belong to a community (that I never chose), of displaced, defeated, depressed people who have to figure out how to put their lives back together, both physically and emotionally.”
How would you react if you flooded and someone said to you…
“Don’t you get tired of only cooking with your microwave upstairs?”
A) “I love popcorn for breakfast, lunch and dinner.”
B) “So come over and chop some fire wood for me.”
C) “It doesn’t get any better than Jimmy-Dean cuisine.”
D) “When I need variety, I bring my microwave downstairs.”
“Well, just think, you get to redecorate!”
A) “I hate decorating. I don’t like shopping. And I liked my home just the way it was.”
B) “Yes, I’m in luck. The second-hand shop is having a scratch-and-dent sale this weekend.”
C) “Unfortunately, at the moment, I have champaign taste on a beer budget.”
D) “I always aspired to that college-dorm-room look, but I’m going to have to settle for the deer-camp feel.”
“Without a kitchen, at least you don’t have to cook very much.”
A) “It’s convenient when you don’t have plates either.”
B) “We’ll just fly to New York for dinner tonight.”
C) “I needed to go on a diet anyway.”
D) “Whatatime I have at Whataburger!”
“You’re still living in your camper?”
A) “Yes, I turned down a weekend at Mar-a-lago so I could enjoy the freedom of the open driveway!”
B) “It’s roomier than a coffin.”
C) “My crew cab doesn’t have a shower.”
D) “Yes, we don’t have a choice. The raccoons have taken over the Port-o-let.”
“That was just ‘stuff.’ You are alive and you have your family.”
A) “I’ll trade you my weird cousin Izzy for some drywall.”
B) “True, but I could do with some matching shoes right about now.”
C) “Who needs hot water when you have each other?”
D) “Yes, living with four-people and a dog in a 276-square-foot camper has brought us closer together than ever.”
“Now you have a blank canvas…”
A) “…and an empty bank account.”
B) “If only I could afford the paint.”
C) “I always wanted to pay for my house a second time!”
D) “I’d look at the bright side, but all my Dale Carnegie books wound up in the dumpster.”
“How’s the house coming along?”
A) “They built the Empire State building in one year; why is my bathroom taking two?”
B) “Kind of like the Mueller investigation. No end in sight.”
C) “Great. I’m having an ATM installed by the front door.”
D) “I like paying top dollar for bargain basement service.”
“We just got back from (insert romantic destination here). You guys going anywhere?”
A) “About all I can afford is a wild weekend in Waller.”
B) “All my money is going into the house; we will not trek Everest this year.”
C) “Can you have a wild weekend in Waller?”
D) “I hear Waller has a good donut shop.”
“What can I do to help?”
A) “I can tell by your Gucci’s that that was a pro forma offer.”
B) “Mean it when you ask.”
C) “Start putting up some drywall.”
D) “Get the skunk out of the closet.”
“We redid our kitchen two years ago. What a nightmare! I know what you are going through!”
A) “I’m pretty sure the judge would call it justifiable homicide.”
B) “I look pretty good in orange jumpsuits.”
C) “You think they’ll give me time off for good behavior?”
D) “Where’s Al Queda when you really need them?”
Said with a wink and a smile. Really. If you heard yourself in any of the questions or responses, give yourself a perfect score. You are still a human being.
Posted by Bob Rehak, August 9, 2018
345 Days since Hurricane Harvey
00adminadmin2018-08-09 06:28:062018-08-09 23:36:06Harvey Brought Us Together; Now It Is Dividing Us
My wife and I were the first in line for early voting on the Count Flood Bond today. By 8:01, were were voting. By 8:02, the Harris County Flood Bond had surged out to a commanding 2-0 margin in the Kingwood area.
Even if your home didn’t flood, the perception that it might will affect your home’s value.
That’s why the Harris County flood bond is likely to be your best investment in your biggest investment – your home.
We need to show the world that we’re serious about fixing our drainage problems, not just pretending they don’t exist.
After Months of Successful Lobbying, Now is the Time to Vote
After months of successful lobbying, residents of the Lake Houston area managed to get key projects included in the Harris County Flood Bond that will reduce the likelihood and severity of flooding in our area. Now it’s time to seal the deal. Get out and vote FOR the bond.
More than 800 Lake Houston area residents submitted input on the bond. As a result, additional detention, dredging, and gates were added to the project list. They will reduce the input during a flood, increase the throughput, and speed up the output.
Please don’t take anything for granted. Get on the phone. Call all your neighbors, all your relatives, all your friends. Get them to vote for the bond. AND get them to contact all of their neighbors, relatives and friends, too. Especially those who did not flood.
Lake Houston Area Can Swing This Election
ONE FOURTH of the 3000 people county-wide that showed up at 23 watershed meetings with county officials were from the Lake Houston area. That’s huge, considering that we have only about ONE TWELFTH of the county’s population. Our voting power can swing this referendum one way or the other. Let’s use it. Vote FOR.
Early Voting Dates and Hours
Early voting started August 8, at the Kingwood Community Center and continues through 4:30 today. Here is the complete list of early voting dates and hours.
Wednesday, August 8, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Thursday, August 9, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Friday, August 10, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Monday, August 13, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Tuesday, August 14, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Wednesday, August 15, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, August 16, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Friday, August 17, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, August 18, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, August 19, 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Monday, August 20, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, August 21, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
The final day for voting is August 25 at your normal polling place. If you wait until August 25 to vote, it will be at your normal polling place. To find your polling place, follow this link.
Posted by Bob Rehak, August 8, 2018
344 Days since Hurricane Harvey
00adminadmin2018-08-08 11:21:332018-08-08 11:34:28Your Best Investment in Your Biggest Investment: Vote FOR the Flood Bond
TACA Now Claims Sand Mines Helped to Prevent Flooding Downstream
David Perkins, CEO of TACA (the Texas Aggregate and Concrete Association) now claims that sand mines helped to prevent flooding downstream. The claim appeared in the current issue of Mining Technology in an article titled “Did Sand Mining Exacerbate Flooding During Hurricane Harvey?”
Perkins is quoted as saying, “…what [these sand mines] actually do – in contrast to what people were stating – is that they stored quite a bit of that floodwater and helped to prevent additional flooding …”
He explained how. “… For example, one 60-acre pit that’s 100 feet deep holds 6,000 acre feet of water. We’ve got some great potential capacity for off-channel storage that we could incorporate into our mining activities.” [Emphasis added twice.]
Did Mines Really Help Prevent Downstream Flooding?
Did they prevent flooding or could they have the potential to do so? Perhaps, but only if they followed best management practices common in other states and countries. More on that later.
Let’s suspend disbelief for a moment and examine Mr. Perkins’ theory.
The difference between the top of the water and the top of the dikes is usually 10 to 20 feet at best. So let’s be generous to Mr. Perkins and assume 20. And let’s use the pit below as a test case. It’s 160 acres – about the size of Kingwood’s East End Park so people will have a reference.
Here’s what the same pit looks like from ground level.
How 8 Minutes was Calculated
The pit above is approximately 160 acres.
Did It Delay, Reduce, or Prevent Flooding?
So this pit really wouldn’t have done much by itself to prevent flooding. It delayed flooding on the West Fork for 8 minutes in a 4-day flood. It reduced flow by 3,200 acre feet. But it did little prevent flooding as Mr. Perkins claims. To put things into perspective, the total amount of flow going into Lake Houston would have filled up NRG stadium in 3.5 minutes (see page 7).
Contribution to Flood Reduction if You Put All Mines Together
However, if you consider all the pits on the West Fork together (20 square miles), they might have delayed flooding by 10 hours according to the same calculations. That’s starting to sound like a significant contribution. Barker and Addicks Reservoirs together store a total of 410,000 acre feet. West Fork sand mines occupy 12,800 acres. If every acre had 20 vertical feet of storage available, you would have 256,000 acre feet of storage. That might not stop Harvey but it could certainly help reduce flooding – especially in smaller floods.
Two Problems Need to Be Addressed with Perkins’ Theory
Mr. Perkins’ theory has two major flaws that would need to be addressed before it could be taken seriously by residents.
That would mean following best management practices common in other states and countries.
Ignoring Best Practices Contributes to Flooding
Regardless of storage POTENTIAL, if mines fail to follow best management practices, they are likely to do more harm than good.
In Texas, we locate mines in floodways. And dikes are so thin that they often fail. Case in point: the mine we are talking about. There, dikes have been breached repeatedly. The river has cut through the pit and carried sediment downstream. That sediment then helped clog the river and create floods, not prevent them.
Rather than trying to deny what happened and change the debate, TACA should acknowledge what happened and work with citizen groups and government to create new regulations that protect the public as well as themselves.
What Really Happened in West Fork Mines During Harvey
Here’s what it looked like. This series of photos shows West Fork sand mines during Harvey on 8/30/17, one day after the peak. The river was flowing at only one-third of its peak on this day, according to the San Jacinto River Authority.
West Fork Sand Mine complex inundated by Harvey. Two of the three stockpiles in this photo were decimated by the flood. Sediment from the pits was also picked up by currents within them and carried downstream. Mine used in illustration above is in center.
Following are several close ups that show water breaching dikes, entering the mine and eroding areas within it and then carrying sediment downstream. All images taken on 8/30/17, courtesy of Google Earth and NASA.
Floodwater broke dikes, captured the sand pit and flowed straight through it.
Rapids within the mine.
Force of floodwater washed out road INSIDE mine.
Floodwater rushing out of forest into sand mine. It then flowed through and over dikes on the opposite side.
Exit Point for Floodwaters in this Mine
This next image shows the floodwaters exiting the mine on the far side after they scooped up sediment.
Floodwaters exit mine during Harvey. Photo taken on 8/30/2017.
Harvey was not the only flood when this has happened. The Memorial Day flood in 2015 and the Tax Day Flood in 2016 also saw breaches of the dikes. Those floods were much smaller and still caused problems, underscoring the need to modify permitting, regulations and best practices.
Exit point when river captured mine during Memorial Day flood in 2015.
Exit point two months later, on 7/31/2015. Breach was still unprepared and mine was leaking sediment into river.
By March of 2016, the breach had been repaired, but you can also see how sand was building up against it.
Less than a year later, when the flood waters had subsided, we can see the growth and orientation of the sand bars within the mine on the upper left in this 2017 image. This indicates that current within the mines during river capture was forcing sediment out of the mines.
I fail to see how this particular sand mine can prevent flooding. These pictures tell a different story. If the operator and TACA supported best management practices common in other states and countries, they might be able to help prevent flooding. But until that happens, I’m going to call Mr. Perkins’ claim a perfect-world generalization that has real-world limitations and exceptions.
And until TACA and the mines acknowledge the role they have played in flooding, residents will have a hard time emotionally accepting their presence in the community.
As always, these are my opinions on a matter of public interest. They are protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP statutes of the great State of Texas.
Posted by Bob Rehak on August 11, 2018
347 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Harvey Brought Us Together; Now It Is Dividing Us
A psychotherapist told me recently how the storm that brought people together is now dividing us.
Taking the bait, I asked, “How so?”
“People who didn’t flood want to get back to their normal lives. People who flooded can’t.”
“And?”
“The ones who didn’t flood just can’t fathom what it’s like for people who did. So they often say well-intentioned things that come off as insensitive.”
“Come in and make yourself right at home.”
“Really?”
“Really!”
So I asked friends who flooded. It’s true. Some want to scream inside even if they’re smiling on the outside.
One told me, “I belong to a community (that I never chose), of displaced, defeated, depressed people who have to figure out how to put their lives back together, both physically and emotionally.”
How would you react if you flooded and someone said to you…
“Don’t you get tired of only cooking with your microwave upstairs?”
A) “I love popcorn for breakfast, lunch and dinner.”
B) “So come over and chop some fire wood for me.”
C) “It doesn’t get any better than Jimmy-Dean cuisine.”
D) “When I need variety, I bring my microwave downstairs.”
“Well, just think, you get to redecorate!”
A) “I hate decorating. I don’t like shopping. And I liked my home just the way it was.”
B) “Yes, I’m in luck. The second-hand shop is having a scratch-and-dent sale this weekend.”
C) “Unfortunately, at the moment, I have champaign taste on a beer budget.”
D) “I always aspired to that college-dorm-room look, but I’m going to have to settle for the deer-camp feel.”
“Without a kitchen, at least you don’t have to cook very much.”
A) “It’s convenient when you don’t have plates either.”
B) “We’ll just fly to New York for dinner tonight.”
C) “I needed to go on a diet anyway.”
D) “Whatatime I have at Whataburger!”
“You’re still living in your camper?”
A) “Yes, I turned down a weekend at Mar-a-lago so I could enjoy the freedom of the open driveway!”
B) “It’s roomier than a coffin.”
C) “My crew cab doesn’t have a shower.”
D) “Yes, we don’t have a choice. The raccoons have taken over the Port-o-let.”
“That was just ‘stuff.’ You are alive and you have your family.”
A) “I’ll trade you my weird cousin Izzy for some drywall.”
B) “True, but I could do with some matching shoes right about now.”
C) “Who needs hot water when you have each other?”
D) “Yes, living with four-people and a dog in a 276-square-foot camper has brought us closer together than ever.”
“Now you have a blank canvas…”
A) “…and an empty bank account.”
B) “If only I could afford the paint.”
C) “I always wanted to pay for my house a second time!”
D) “I’d look at the bright side, but all my Dale Carnegie books wound up in the dumpster.”
“How’s the house coming along?”
A) “They built the Empire State building in one year; why is my bathroom taking two?”
B) “Kind of like the Mueller investigation. No end in sight.”
C) “Great. I’m having an ATM installed by the front door.”
D) “I like paying top dollar for bargain basement service.”
“We just got back from (insert romantic destination here). You guys going anywhere?”
A) “About all I can afford is a wild weekend in Waller.”
B) “All my money is going into the house; we will not trek Everest this year.”
C) “Can you have a wild weekend in Waller?”
D) “I hear Waller has a good donut shop.”
“What can I do to help?”
A) “I can tell by your Gucci’s that that was a pro forma offer.”
B) “Mean it when you ask.”
C) “Start putting up some drywall.”
D) “Get the skunk out of the closet.”
“We redid our kitchen two years ago. What a nightmare! I know what you are going through!”
A) “I’m pretty sure the judge would call it justifiable homicide.”
B) “I look pretty good in orange jumpsuits.”
C) “You think they’ll give me time off for good behavior?”
D) “Where’s Al Queda when you really need them?”
Said with a wink and a smile. Really. If you heard yourself in any of the questions or responses, give yourself a perfect score. You are still a human being.
Posted by Bob Rehak, August 9, 2018
345 Days since Hurricane Harvey
Your Best Investment in Your Biggest Investment: Vote FOR the Flood Bond
My wife and I were the first in line for early voting on the Count Flood Bond today. By 8:01, were were voting. By 8:02, the Harris County Flood Bond had surged out to a commanding 2-0 margin in the Kingwood area.
Even if your home didn’t flood, the perception that it might will affect your home’s value.
We need to show the world that we’re serious about fixing our drainage problems, not just pretending they don’t exist.
After Months of Successful Lobbying, Now is the Time to Vote
After months of successful lobbying, residents of the Lake Houston area managed to get key projects included in the Harris County Flood Bond that will reduce the likelihood and severity of flooding in our area. Now it’s time to seal the deal. Get out and vote FOR the bond.
More than 800 Lake Houston area residents submitted input on the bond. As a result, additional detention, dredging, and gates were added to the project list. They will reduce the input during a flood, increase the throughput, and speed up the output.
We’ve all heard the arguments for and against the bond. We’ve learned what the impact of the bond will be on taxes. Now we just need to approve it.
If approved, the bond will provide vital money that provides the local match for critical projects, such as dredging the west fork mouth bar and the addition of ten new flood gates to the Lake Houston Dam.
Please don’t take anything for granted. Get on the phone. Call all your neighbors, all your relatives, all your friends. Get them to vote for the bond. AND get them to contact all of their neighbors, relatives and friends, too. Especially those who did not flood.
Lake Houston Area Can Swing This Election
ONE FOURTH of the 3000 people county-wide that showed up at 23 watershed meetings with county officials were from the Lake Houston area. That’s huge, considering that we have only about ONE TWELFTH of the county’s population. Our voting power can swing this referendum one way or the other. Let’s use it. Vote FOR.
Early Voting Dates and Hours
Early voting started August 8, at the Kingwood Community Center and continues through 4:30 today. Here is the complete list of early voting dates and hours.
Wednesday, August 8, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Thursday, August 9, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Friday, August 10, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Monday, August 13, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Tuesday, August 14, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Wednesday, August 15, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, August 16, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Friday, August 17, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, August 18, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, August 19, 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Monday, August 20, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, August 21, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
The final day for voting is August 25 at your normal polling place. If you wait until August 25 to vote, it will be at your normal polling place. To find your polling place, follow this link.
Posted by Bob Rehak, August 8, 2018
344 Days since Hurricane Harvey