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Thursday, February 3, 2000
Area beaches to receive coastal preservation funds
By Aimee Courtice
Caller-Times
Texas boasts the third longest coastline in the nation. But when it comes to protecting its beaches and bays, the Lone Star State comes in last, said Texas Land Commissioner David Dewhurst.
Dewhurst and other state and local officials want to change that by starting a program to protect the natural resource that creates an $11 million tourism industry.
On Wednesday, Dewhurst announced in Corpus Christi the first 27 coastal preservation projects under the Coastal Erosion Planning and Response Act, which was passed by the state legislature last May to combat erosion of beaches and bays. The projects will receive a combined $15 million from the state and up to $12 million in federal funds.
Most of the projects entail dredging and dumping sand to coastal areas where the existing sand has eroded. The new sand will protect highways and park areas as well as residential and commercial properties from the damage of creeping tides and severe weather.
But before the designated areas see any tangible improvements, county and city governments need to match 25 percent of the cost of the projects in their area.
The projects span Texas' coastline from north of Galveston Bay to Port Isabel. They were designated based on public feedback from a series of 13 town meetings that began last May.
Dewhurst said he hopes to have half of the projects completed by the end of this August and the rest completed by August 31, 2001.
Of the $5 million allocated to Nueces County coastal areas, $2 million will go to shaping up Corpus Christi Beach. Another $2 million will fund the south shore of the Corpus Christi Ship Channel.
The remaining funds are for various bay marshland restoration projects through the Coastal Bend Bays Estuaries Program. Other projects have been planned for areas in Kleberg, Aransas and Refugio counties.
Staff writer Aimee Courtice can be reached at 886-3622 or by e-mail at courticea@caller.com
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