Tag Archive for: dredging district

Flickinger Provides Updates on Lake Houston Gates, Dredging District

6/18/25 – While speaking to the Kingwood Executive Group this morning, Houston District E City Council Member Fred Flickinger reassured members that the project to add more flood gates to the Lake Houston Dam was on track. He said that the engineering and environmental survey work should be completed by the end of this year as previously promised.

Houston City Council Member Fred Flickinger addressing members of Kingwood Executive Group today.

However, he also cautioned that a potential cost increase might skew the critical Benefit/Cost Ratio (BCR) used to evaluate grant applications.

In an update on a related drainage issue, Flickinger explained how important the passage of Rep. Charles Cunningham’s Lake Houston Dredging District bill was for the Lake Houston area. Specifically, he talked about how dredging done to date reduced predicted peaks in the May 2024 flood by more than 2 feet and kept water from entering homes throughout Kingwood and the Lake Houston Area.

Latest on Gates Project

After Hurricane Harvey, many people focused on the addition of more flood gates to the Lake Houston Dam could reduce lake levels and flooding by letting water out faster before and during major storms.

Lake Conroe’s dam can release water 15 times faster than the gates on Lake Houston’s dam.

The gates on Lake Houston’s dam release water so slowly that the City must begin releasing water days before a storm to create significant extra storage capacity in the lake.

With a lead time measured in days, forecasts can change before storms arrive. But with a higher release capacity, dam operators could wait until they were certain a storm would hit before opening the gates.

Flickinger stated that the engineering for the additional gates should be at least 90 percent complete by the end of 2025.

“At that point in time,” said Flickinger, “they’ll be able to get accurate BCRs. And they’re already working on the environmental study. Black & Veatch is handling that.”

Community meetings within the next 4 to 5 months will give the public a chance for input.

Construction Still Predicted to Start in 2028, Completion in 2029

“I think they’ll be able to start construction in 2028 and complete the project in 2029,” said Flickinger. “Nothing’s really changed with the dates in the last six months.”

Early indications are that the project could need another $35 million. Flickinger said, “That could delay the project a little bit if they don’t get the BCR they need. But we got it one time; I think we’ll get it a second.”

Flickinger was referring to when Dave Martin, his predecessor convinced FEMA to include social benefits in the calculation of the BCR. Typically, benefits must exceed costs before FEMA or any other group will award a grant.

Since Flickinger took office, the plan for the gates has significantly changed. The original plan was to construct crest gates on the concrete portion of the spillway. However, because of the risk involved, the City could not find a contractor willing to bid on that job.

The new plan is to add tainter gates to the earthen portion of the dam. The project basically turned into a “start over.”

Kudos to Crenshaw and Cunningham

In his talk today, Flickinger also addressed dredging – past, present and future.

He thanked US Rep. Dan Crenshaw and State Rep. Charles Cunningham. “We’re dredging out on the lake today,” said Flickinger. “That’s part of the money that Congressman Crenshaw got for us. We’re moving 800,000 cubic yards of sediment. And that makes a huge difference,” said Flickinger, before lauding HB1532, Rep. Charles Cunningham’s bill that will create a permanent dredging district on Lake Houston.

The Computer Model that Missed and the Legislation that Didn’t

To underscore the importance of dredging, Flickinger explained how computer models missed predictions for the timing and crest of the May 2024 floods in the Lake Houston Area … at a time when water was already lapping at the foundations of thousands of homes.

“The expectation was that the water would crest two feet higher than it did. But they missed it because their model did not include all the dredging that had been done over the last several years. They missed by about two feet and a day. The river was supposed to crest two feet higher and one day later,” said Flickinger.

“But all the dredging allowed the water to flow into the lake and over the dam faster than what they thought it would. So the dredging is a huge deal.”

HB1532, the bill to create a Lake Houston Dredging and Maintenance District, finally passed in this year’s session of the state legislature – after three previous tries.

“Sediment comes into the river and the lake 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” said Flickinger. “And unless we do something about that, it’s going to be a huge problem.”

Even though Cunningham got the dredging district over the goal line this year, Flickinger was quick to acknowledge assists from Senators Paul Bettencourt, Brandon Creighton and Mayes Middleton who helped push it through the Senate.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 6/18/2025

2850 Days since Hurricane Harvey

Dredging District Bill Passes Unanimously in Senate

5/28/25 – HB1532, the Lake Houston Area Dredging District Bill, passed unanimously in the Texas Senate tonight, 31-0.

“My first thought after I saw this passed was that it was a victory for Kingwood,” said Representative Charles Cunningham who pushed the idea of a dredging district relentlessly for years.

Today is the last day of the legislative session that the Senate considers bills. So it was do-or-die time. And Senator Brandon Creighton teed the bill up perfectly with the help of Senator Paul Bettencourt who shepherded the bill through his Local Government Committee.

Now, it’s on to the Governor’s desk. The good news: shortly after Harvey, Governor Abbott visited Kingwood. He flew up and down the West Fork. He personally saw the mouth bar and other sediment buildups in our rivers and streams.

After his helicopter landed, he issued seven directives designed to reduce flood risk in the Lake Houston Area. And this is a huge step in that direction. So, he should be onboard.

Congratulations

Thank you to all those who wrote letters, testified in Austin, and never gave up hope for a dredging district. It was a true team effort between residents who never forgot the pain of flooding and leaders who never forgot those they represented. Together, we will make a difference for future generations and the future of the area.

I would be remiss if I didn’t also thank former State Rep. Dan Huberty; former Mayor Pro Tem Dave Martin; City Council Members Fred Flickinger and Twila Carter; and the Army Corps of Engineers. They started this ball rolling years ago. \

And thank you, too, Houston Mayor John Whitmire. Former City Flood Czar Stephen Costello. The architects of the 2018 Flood Bond. Congressman Dan Crenshaw. Harris County Commissioner Tom Ramsey. And Bill McCabe and Dianne Lansden, who kept the Lake Houston Area Flood Prevention Initiation going for years.

My apologies to anyone I overlooked. So many contributed! They all had one thing in common. They put the safety of each other above partisan politics. And it showed in tonight’s unanimous vote.

Beating the Odds

Between “dream” and “done” in the Texas legislature, there’s a lot of hard work.

I came across this table today on the Texas Legislature Online website. It shows the success rate of various types of legislation to date.

Of all the bills introduced in both the House and Senate to date, only about 1 in 12 made it this far.

These numbers will change tomorrow because of additional bills passed today in both the House and Senate.

Here’s what each of those acronyms above stands for:

HB – House Bill
  • A proposed law originating in the House of Representatives.
  • If passed by both chambers and signed by the Governor (or allowed to become law), it becomes part of Texas statute.
  • Used for substantive changes to law (e.g., criminal statutes, environmental rules, etc.).
SB – Senate Bill
  • A proposed law originating in the Senate.
  • Same process and purpose as an HB, just introduced in the Senate instead of the House.
HJR – House Joint Resolution
  • Proposes an amendment to the Texas Constitution or requests Congress to call a constitutional convention.
  • Does not require the Governor’s signature.
  • If it’s a proposed constitutional amendment, it must be approved by voters in a statewide election.
  • Originates in the House.
SJR – Senate Joint Resolution
  • Same as HJR, but introduced in the Senate.
HCR – House Concurrent Resolution
  • Expresses the will of the House and Senate together but does not have the force of law.
  • Often used to make requests of federal government, authorize ceremonial recognitions, or approve internal legislative matters (e.g., adjournment).
  • Requires approval by both chambers, but not the Governor’s signature.
SCR – Senate Concurrent Resolution
  • Same as HCR, but introduced in the Senate.
HR – House Resolution
  • Used for internal House matters or to express one chamber’s opinion or recognition.
  • Examples: honoring a constituent, changing House rules.
  • Only requires action in the House.
SR – Senate Resolution
  • Same as HR, but for the Senate.

The table below summarizes key differences.

Summary Table

TypeOriginPurposeRequires Governor’s Signature?
HBHouseStatutory law✅ Yes
SBSenateStatutory law✅ Yes
HJRHouseConstitutional amendment❌ No (goes to voters)
SJRSenateConstitutional amendment❌ No (goes to voters)
HCRHouseCeremonial / joint action❌ No
SCRSenateCeremonial / joint action❌ No
HRHouseHouse-only resolution❌ No
SRSenateSenate-only resolution❌ No

To compare this year’s statistics with previous years’, see Texas Legislature Online.

Posted by Bob Rehak on May 28, 2025

2829 Days since Hurricane Harvey

Ask Sen. Creighton to Support Lake Houston Dredging District Bill

5/4/25 – A bill by State Rep. Charles Cunningham (HB 1532) that would create a Lake Houston Dredging District has passed overwhelmingly in the House and moved to the Senate. The bill received 114 Yeas and 19 Nays in the House, but has yet to pick up traction in the Senate.

Perhaps no other bill is as important to the future of NE Harris County as this one. Please contact Senator Brandon Creighton who represents the Lake Houston area and ask him to sponsor HB1532 in the Senate.

dredging
Dredge used in Emergency West Fork Dredging program by Army Corps after Harvey

What HB1532 Would Do

Here is the engrossed version of HB1532. Engrossed means that it incorporates amendments added to the bill in the House before passage. So, it is the latest version as of this writing.

Lake Houston supplies water for more than 2 million people in the Houston region. But sediment buildups from sand mines and new development upstream continue to plague it. And that, in turn has contributed to widespread flooding.

Such sediment buildups have reduced the capacity of Lake Houston by almost 10% as the region’s population has grown by more than 500%.

Texas Water Development Board and US Census Bureau

While dredging since Hurricane Harvey has helped remove some of the sediment in the headwaters of the lake, we need a long-term, ongoing maintenance program to address new sediment that continues to come downstream with ever major rain.

The Committee Substitute of HB 1532 seeks to address this issue by creating the Lake Houston Dredging and Maintenance District. It will provide dredging and maintenance operations in the area that improve water flow and reduce sediment buildup.

A five-person board would govern the district:

  • One director appointed by the Houston City Council
  • Two appointed by Houston Public Works
  • One appointed by the Mayor
  • One appointed Harris County Commissioners Court

Dredging could take place only in Harris County; Montgomery County is not affected. The Lake itself; East and West Forks of the San Jacinto; Luce Bayou; and Caney Creek are all in bounds.

The District could also sign inter-local agreements with cities such as Humble, to address sediment in its channels that lead to the lake. However, the District could not charge other entities for the dredging it does under such inter-local agreements.

Provisions in the bill prohibit the District from degrading water quality in the Lake. And the District would have to obtain permission from Houston Public Works before doing any dredging.

Financing

The District could NOT levy taxes or charge a fee. But it could issue bonds secured by district revenue.

The bill authorizes the legislature to fund the district’s activities but caps appropriations at $25 million per fiscal year until September 1, 2027.

The bill requires the District to study methods of financing and to make the study’s results available to the public. Early talk around financing focused on beneficial uses of sediment removed from the lake and its tributaries.

For instance, the District could sell the spoils to developers who need to raise slabs or build up areas. Spoils could also be used in projects such as the Ike Dike or road improvements.

Please Help

HB 1532 does not:

  • Raise taxes
  • Levy fees
  • Affect people outside of Harris County

HB 1532 would:

  • Make the people and businesses of the Lake Houston area safer
  • Help restore the capacity of Lake Houston and its tributaries
  • Enhance the water security of the region
  • Reduce flooding
  • Fuel economic development
  • Help avoid economic disruptions, such as we experienced after Harvey.

As long as surrounding counties keep sending sediment downstream, the least they can do is support HB 1532.

Please email Senator Brandon Creighton or call his office at (512) 463-0104. Please ask him to sponsor HB 1532 in the Senate. It will only take a minute!

Posted by Bob Rehak on 5/4/25

2805 Days since Hurricane Harvey

HB 1532 Would Create Dredging and Maintenance District

1/31/25 – State Representative Charles Cunningham (District 127) has proposed HB 1532 in the 89th Texas Legislature. It would create a Lake Houston Dredging and Maintenance District.

The bill has the potential to benefit all citizens of Harris County and from my perspective is one of the most important bills introduced in this legislature.

Essentially the Dredging and Maintenance District would be a conservation and reclamation district. Article 16, Section 9 of the Texas Constitution authorizes the creation of such districts.

The District’s main purpose: “restore, maintain, or expand the capacity of the lake and its tributaries to convey storm flows.” But the range of benefits could be much wider.

Keep in mind that the lake provides drinking water for more than 2 million people and sediment constantly shrinks its capacity.

dredging and maintenance district
The City of Houston is still dredging sand deposited by Hurricane Harvey more than seven years ago.

Maintenance needs to be constant. Imagine having to wait for an act of Congress to fill up your car with gasoline, then spending another two years applying for a grant and a year bidding the purchase. That’s the situation we have.

Potential Benefits

If approved, the bill has the potential to:

  • Increase Lake Houston’s capacity, which until now has constantly dwindled due to sediment deposited during periodic floods
  • Offset sediment swept downstream from upstream sand mines
  • Maintain the drinking water supply capacity for more than 2 million people
  • Reduce flooding in the Lake Houston Area by increasing the conveyance of tributaries and eliminating blockages at their mouths that back water up into homes and businesses.
  • Provide a source of material for beneficial uses such as:
    • Making concrete
    • Building roads
    • Elevating home foundations in new developments
    • Supporting public works projects, such as providing material to build the Ike Dike.

Governed by City- and County-Appointed Directors

Seven directors would govern the district. Harris County Commissioners Court and Houston City Council would each appoint three. The County and City would jointly appoint the seventh. They would have staggered 4-year terms.

Powers and Duties of District

“Dredging and maintenance” include the removal of debris that accumulates under and over the water of Lake Houston and its tributaries. That includes floating debris, such as trees that wash into the lake during floods.

The District may form inter-local agreements (ILAs) with other organizations within the boundaries of the District (Harris County).

The District would not have the power of eminent domain.

In performing its duties, the District may not negatively affect the water quality in Lake Houston. That includes the quality of water treated by the City’s Northeast Water Purification Plant.

Before performing any dredging or maintenance, the District must obtain the approval of the City’s Director of Public Works.

Financing

The District would not have to pay a fee to take the material it dredges, but could make money to finance operations by selling that material. It may not impose taxes or charge fees.

But the District could apply for grants from sources such as FEMA, HUD, and the Texas Water Development Board.

The State legislature could also appropriate up to $25 million per year to help jumpstart operations, but not after September 1, 2027.

As one of its first duties, the District would have to develop a plan of financing and make that plan available to the public for comment.

Start Date

If more than two-thirds of each house in the Legislature approve, the bill would take effect immediately. If approved with less than a two-thirds majority, the District would take effect on September 1, 2025.

Commissioners Court and City Council would have to name board members no later than September 1, 2026.

Similar to 2023 Bill

Cunningham proposed a similar bill in the previous legislature that died in committee. Cunningham was a freshman in the legislature back in 2023 and he introduced the bill late in the session. Now he has more friends and seniority which could get him on the committee reviewing the bill.

Also this bill was introduced much earlier, improving the chances it will be heard (It’s #1532 vs. #5341).

Other than changing the dates and numbers, the bills are virtually identical.

Let’s hope Mr. Cunningham has the pull to get on the committee reviewing the bill this year.

At this point, the bill has not been sent to any committee yet. Nor have any other additional sponsors signed on.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 1/31/25

2712 Days since Hurricane Harvey

The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.

Support Creation of Dredging District to Reduce Floods, Improve Lake Capacity

In the 2021 Legislation session, State Rep. Dan Huberty introduced HB2525, a bill to create a Dredging and Maintenance District for Lake Houston. Senator Brandon Creighton introduced an identical companion bill in the senate, SB1892. It deserves the support of everyone in the Houston region who depends on the lake for water as well as those whose homes and businesses flooded during Harvey.

Why We Need Perpetual Maintenance Dredging

For those who may not remember, during Harvey enough sand and silt came down the San Jacinto West Fork to block the river by 90% according to the US Army Corps of Engineers.

South of the Kingwood Country Club’s Island Course, Hurricane Harvey deposited several feet of sand that reduced the carrying capacity of the West Fork by 90%, according to the Army Corps.

Massive sediment and tree deposits dammed the river at the Union Pacific Railroad Bridge, south of the Kingwood County Club, West Lake Houston Parkway and Kings Point. The blockages contributed to the flooding of 16,000 homes and 3,300 businesses.

Union Pacific Railroad Bridge over West Fork after Harvey had turned into a “beaver dam” because of deadfall washed downstream and caught in the supports.
After Harvey, sand deposits at the West Lake Houston Parkway bridge reached the tree tops.
West Fork Mouth Bar immediately after Harvey virtually blocked the river between Kings Point and Atascocita Point (top right).

Two years later, Tropical Storm Imelda made similar deposits on the East Fork where thousands of additional homes flooded.

Wherever moving bodies of water meet standing bodies, the current decelerates and sediment tends to drop out of suspension. You can see the same phenomenon where smaller streams and channels enter the lake.

Brown & Root Report, 2000
Rogers Gully mouth bar in Atascocita

History of Disputes with FEMA, Corps Over Deferred Maintenance

After Harvey, leaders in the Humble/Kingwood Area fought with the Corps to remove the biggest of the blockages – the West Fork Mouth Bar. The Corps fought back.

The Corps and FEMA believed the massive mouth bar had been growing for years and that it resulted from deferred maintenance.

There was some truth to that. That reach of the West Fork had never been dredged at least in the previous 40 years. The ensuing debate lasted more than a year.

That’s why, shortly after the Corps started its Emergency Dredging program in 2018, it emphasized the need for maintenance dredging to a) avoid such disputes and b) keep problems at a subacute level.

Two Years Later, FEMA/Corps Agreed to Partial Mouth Bar Dredging

Then, in 2019, the City of Houston commissioned Tetra Tech to harvest core samples from the bar. The samples showed that most sand and silt was recently deposited. FEMA later relented and agreed to have the Corps dredge 500,000 cubic yards from a six hundred acre area south of the mouth bar. The Corps finished that dredging in late 2019. The City continued the program with mechanical dredges in January of 2020. They’re still at it. And people are still at risk from the next big flood.

Lake Houston Has Lost 22,000 Acre Feet of Capacity

Meanwhile, Lake Houston, which supplies water to millions of people has been steadily losing capacity. In 2018, the Texas Water Development Board found the lake had lost more than 22,000 acre feet of capacity. The problems are most apparent around the edges of the lake and in its upstream reaches. Both natural streams and man-made channels have become silted in. Mouth bars on both the East and West Forks have reduced the depth of the San Jacinto to approximately 3 feet (from 25 to 30 feet), except where it has already been dredged.

Atascocita resident walking across the river in 2019 without getting his shirt wet.

This cannot continue indefinitely. Nor can we expect the federal government to pay for deferred maintenance in the future; we have been warned. If we expect help again in the future after disasters, we must be able to show what bottom depths were before the storms. And those kinds of surveys are regular parts of maintenance dredging programs.

Safety and Future at Stake

In the three and a half years since Harvey, according to boaters and residents, we have not yet been able to restore the area between Kings Point and Atascocita Point to its pre-storm depth. We haven’t even removed all of the mouth bar.

Three mechanical dredges are still trying to reduce the West Fork Mouth bar more than 15 months after they started. Photo taken 3/19/21.

We need to figure how much sediment comes downriver every year and remove at least that much with a maintenance dredging program to:

  • Stop or reduce the loss of reservoir capacity
  • Reduce the risk of flooding
  • Show good faith to FEMA, eliminate contentious arguments with regular river bottom surveys, and demonstrate how much build-up resulted from a particular disaster.

We also need to be able to quickly accelerate the program after major storms such as Harvey and Imelda.

Dredging needs to be a continuous activity because one major flood can deposit more sediment than humans can remove in years.

How You Can Help

I urge you to support HB2525. Write as many local leaders on the City, County and State levels as possible. Pay particular attention to the House Natural Resources Committee where the bill is pending hearings right now. State Senator Brandon Creighton has filed an identical companion bill, SB1892, which has been referred to the Local Government Committee.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 3/28/2021

1307 Days after Hurricane Harvey