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Effective
advocates guide river reopening
Published July
8, 2008
The piping plover
will have to move over temporarily
but will have twice as much room to
nest after a project to reopen the
mouth of the San Bernard River is
complete.
An environmental impact study
indicated threatened species will
not be permanently affected, and a
remote sensing study led to a shift
in the planned channel alignment
after crews found what might be ship
wreckage or pieces from an historic
hotel that once rested on the
river’s eastern bank.
With those issues settled, the major
project is greenlighted to proceed
in October. This October.
That has to be some kind of record,
at least in this area, for an Army
Corps of Engineers assessment and
approval. Widening a road — heck,
even building a golf course — took
much longer to earn the go-ahead
than this massive project in western
Brazoria County.
The San Bernard mouth project has
moved so quickly because of two
reasons:
1) A well-organized, cohesive
campaign by tireless advocates
squeaking their wheels loudly and
within shouting distance of the
right ears, and;
2) A cause just that important, just
that righteous so as to hit nary a
roadblock along the way.
A project of this magnitude cannot
succeed without both of those things
coming together.
Some concerned residents formed the
group Friends Of the River San
Bernard in 2004 to advocate for the
reopening of the river mouth in
order to improve recreational
opportunities, commerce along the
river and safety. All of this can be
accomplished, the group contends,
since the project will alleviate the
fast flow of water at the Brazos
River floodgates.
And it was that last reason that got
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on
board.
The plan is to have a contract
awarded for the work by Sept. 30 and
for the entire project to be
complete by Christmas.
By the end of the year, a canal 100
feet wide and 10 feet deep will
exist where silt now chokes the San
Bernard before it can reach the Gulf
of Mexico. Instead of the San
Bernard being funneled through the
Intracoastal Waterway and into the
Brazos River, as it is now, the
river will find its rightful end in
the Gulf.
It will be a win for advocates who
live near the area to be improved,
and it will be a win for those who
navigate the waters, both for
commercial and pleasure purposes.
It wouldn’t have happened, though,
if not for the group that put this
worthwhile project in the spotlight.
Today’s editorial was written by
Yvonne Mintz, managing editor of The
Facts.
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PROJECT TIMELINE
Work to clear the San Bernard River
mouth could be finished by year’s
end.
June: Environmental assessment draft
completed
Sept. 30: Contract awarded
Oct. 21: Work scheduled to begin
Dec. 21: Completion expected
Source: Friends of the River San
Bernard |