Severe beacherosion atSurfside,Texas causedbyengineeringchanges tothe coast andrivers
A River of Sand,Sand Movement in the Surf ZoneA River of Sand,Sand Movement in the Surf Zone
•700,000 to 800,000 cuyd/yr
•250 Dump Trucks Per Day
•One Dump Truck Every 6 Minutes
Galveston East Jetty,23 million cubic meters of sand stored(4 million dump trucks)Galveston East Jetty,23 million cubic meters of sand stored(4 million dump trucks)
The Octagon, 1969
From Surfrider Foundation website
The Octagon, 2000
From Surfriders website
From Surfrider Foundation website
Brazos River Deltas 1935Brazos River Deltas 1935
New Delta
Old Delta
River moved in 1929 Location of Surfside
Brazos River Delta, 1938
NEW
OLD
Location ofSurfside
Brazos River Deltas 1954Brazos River Deltas 1954
Old Delta
New Delta
Location of Surfside
Brazos R. Sediment DischargeBrazos R. Sediment Discharge
From Mathewson & Minter, 1976
Brazos Deltas circa 2002Brazos Deltas circa 2002
New Delta
Old Delta
Surfside
Historic Shorelines, SurfsideHistoric Shorelines, Surfside
1930 (river moved in 1929)
1950
1960
1980
2000
From Texas General Land Office, Databy Bureau of Eco. Geol., Aerial Photo2006
Relative Sea Level Rise, Galveston, TXRelative Sea Level Rise, Galveston, TX
From James Gibeaut, Bureau of Economic Geology, Univ.Texas, Austin
Surfside has many causes ofshoreline retreatSurfside has many causes ofshoreline retreat
•Brazos River mouth and delta moved•Brazos River mouth and delta moved
•Freeport Entrance greatly enlarged•Freeport Entrance greatly enlarged
•Subsidence due to water extraction•Subsidence due to water extraction
•Updrift sand impoundments at jetties•Updrift sand impoundments at jetties
•Updrift sand loss at man-made inlet•Updrift sand loss at man-made inlet
•Sea level rise•Sea level rise
•Reduced sand from rivers due to dams•Reduced sand from rivers due to dams
New Brazos River Delta, 1999
San BernardRiver
SurfsideVillage
Old Shoreline
