Galveston Island - 'warping'

Subsidence, development, and shoreline erosion, turned an area of 1,100 acres of marsh in the 1930s to <100 acres by 1998. With a $2.1 million grant package a project was established to stabilise the bay shoreline along a 2-mile section of Galveston Island. A year was spent collecting and assessing data from recent and historic aerial photographs, geotechnical and bathymetric surveys, and other area restoration projects. It was determined that a successful restoration could be made employing three principle methods:

• Restoring substrate levels to an elevation suitable for re-establishment of smooth cordgrass Spartina alterniflora (marsh terracing, also used in Louisiana and similar to the 'gripping' process used in Europe);
• Planting to re-establish vegetation quickly;
• Construction of wave barriers or breaks to protect the new marsh using Geo-tubes.

The techniques developed during this project had bay-wide applications to enhance bay resources.