Coastal Restoration

I asked Silvia how surviving these disasters has changed her life. “A lot,” she said. “What we have today could be gone tomorrow. “

Hurricanes are a reality of coastal life, and people are now part of that coastal ecosystem. If we are to live and thrive on our coastal margins we have understand and adapt to that reality and secure the capital needed to plan for our resilient future. We have a lot to learn from the fishes.

FEMA could still respond to emergencies — but after a spate of hurricanes and wildfires, a shutdown could hamper the agency in other ways, former officials say.

A Los Angeles Times analysis

Beavers take advantage of ponds brimming with water, nearby dirt roads show little evidence of being recently inundated. In the greater Houston area, though, the staggering increase of impervious surfaces - roads, sidewalks, parking lots, anything covered with asphalt and concrete - has exacerbated the effects of flooding as development in the region has exploded. Things are further complicated in flat-as-a-pancake Houston, where much of the soil is heavily compacted and acts like pavement anyway, sending sheets of stormwater to the nearest low-lying area. A recent analysis of federal satellite data by the Houston Advanced Research Council for the Houston Chronicle shows that 337,000 acres of 1.1 million acres in Harris County were covered by impervious surfaces in 2011, the most recent year of data. That kind of development comes with a price, namely the loss of the region's natural landscape, including wetlands, prairies, coastal marshlands and forests, and thereby a greater risk of flooding. While many Houston-area homeowners blame inadequate stormwater mitigation rules for their flooding woes, city and county officials deny that but concede that it's difficult to untangle the effects of new development, flood control projects and climate change when trying to determine the culprit for the region's worsening flood problem. People love water features, said Trey Reichert, vice president and general manager of Riverstone for Johnson Development Corp. There's something very calming. Larry Dunbar was a consultant hired by Fort Bend in the early 80's to help draft the first set of detention pond requirements. [...] most counties were solely relying on drainage systems to combat runoff. The group, Residents Against Flooding, cited the 2007 widening of Bunker Hill Road north of I-10 and the elevation of nearby commercial properties, among other projects, alleging they funneled water into surrounding neighborhoods. The residents' group claims the defendants promised to build five detention ponds to alleviate flooding but only came through with one. A Texas A&M University study in 2011 found that clustered high-density development - the kind you see in the concrete-laden urban core of Houston - typically experience less in flood damages than sprawling low-density developments that have become hallmarks of Houston's suburbs. The 232 unit-complex, subsidized for low-income residents, was built in the floodway of Green's Bayou and is being rebuilt in the same spot in the city's Greenspoint neighborhood in north Houston near Bush Intercontinental Airport. Given the challenges associated with detention ponds and other structural solutions to Houston's regional flooding problems, officials are getting pressure to consider "greener" solutions. The Bayou Land Conservancy, which protects more than 2,000 acres in Montgomery County, wants to make sure development stays out of the floodplain and turn that land into a community amenity, whether a butterfly garden, wildlife habitat or a place for recreation. Stephanie Prosser, the conservancy's interim executive director, points to the Spring Creek Greenway, a forested corridor that spans the divide between Harris and Montgomery counties, as a good example of an environmentally friendly project. A study conducted by the Harris County Flood Control District two years ago looked at how water flows from the Cypress Creek watershed to Addicks and Barker reservoirs and shows that sage grass - grass with a similar root structure of the prairie grass found in that area - does a pretty good job of absorbing water given the poor absorption of the area's clay soil. In Pattison, smack dab in the middle of the Katy Prairie, more than 23 inches of rain fell during a 14-hour period on April 17 and 18, the highest amount ever recorded in the county for an historic rainfall event. [...] they'll need new roads to get there.

Hundreds of thousands of people live in flood-prone cities like Houston, Miami, New Orleans, Tampa Bay and New York. Here’s what 500-year floods look like, or could look like, in those cities.

Houston is spending a quiet Labor Day Monday as clean up and rebuilding are underway after the chaos that came with Harvey.

As Texas recovers from Hurricane Harvey, Floridians may be wondering how well the state could weather a similar storm.

Newly licensed operators are getting to work.

Hurricanes, wildfires and other natural disasters seem to be getting more severe. Is climate change to blame?

Real-time mapping is crucial right now. Here's how you can help.

Hurricane Harvey dumped 50 inches of rain on parts of Houston. Scientists are now trying to identify contaminants spread by the storm, including those in mud at the bottom of the Houston Ship Channel.

By J. Michael Cavanaugh and Eric LeeActing Secretary of Homeland Security Elaine Duke has issued an extension of the original…

17:00 UTC Tuesday, September 12 Emily Paterson, director – Model Product Management, RMS Irma has now dissipated to the relief of many, not least those

While Hurricane Harvey brought violent, dangerous flooding Hurricane Ike was a windy, pounding mess. 

To address increasing numbers of mosquitoes, Kelly Air Force Base in San Antonio will be conducting an aerial spray operation beginning Thursday evening,September 14. 

A news anchor’s use of the word “looting” on Twitter to describe a scene in Houston’s floodwaters reminded many of a debate that raged during Hurricane Katrina.