Texas Border Business
AUSTIN – Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, M.D., is proud to announce the recent completion of the largest beach nourishment project in Texas – the McFaddin Beach Nourishment and Dune Restoration Project Phase II, which encompasses 14.5 miles of restored dunes and beaches. This project was completed late last year by the Coastal Resources Division of the Texas General Land Office (GLO) and various stakeholders.
“As a Texan who grew up near the coast, preserving our state’s precious shorelines and their communities remains one of my top priorities,” said Commissioner Buckingham. “The completion of the McFaddin Beach project is a crucial milestone in the GLO’s work to help our beaches rebound naturally from hurricanes and various storms that threaten our coastline. I thank our Coastal Erosion Planning and Response Act Project managers and the collaborating GLO divisions for their hard work to complete this historic project. I look forward to many more victories for the Texas coast as we continue serving the people of this great state well.”
Situated on the Texas Chenier Plain in Jefferson County, the McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge is home to the Salt Bayou ecosystem, the largest contiguous estuarine marsh complex in Texas. This ecosystem is approximately 139,000 acres of habitat ranging from freshwater to estuarine marsh, coastal grasslands, tidal flats, creeks, basins, and associated aquatic vegetation.
The project was implemented by the GLO’s Coastal Erosion Planning and Response Act (CEPRA) project managers who oversee various coastal restoration projects and studies, including beach nourishment, habitat restoration, shoreline protection, and debris removal. The project’s engineer of record was HDR Engineering, Inc. with dredging and beach work constructed by Weeks Marine, Inc and planting work completed by RES, LLC.
The project involved stakeholders from the McFaddin NWR, Jefferson County, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) RESTORE Program, and the Natural Resources Damage and Assessment (NRDA) Deepwater Horizon Texas Trustee Implementation Group (Texas TIG).
Partial funding support was provided by the NRDA Deepwater Horizon Texas TIG, which includes GLO, TCEQ, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Interior, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and U.S. Department of Agriculture. In a CEPRA Program first, the project utilized all three sources of Deepwater Horizon funds to maximize restoration efforts.
“This beach and dune restoration project is an integral component of our efforts to restore and protect wildlife habitat within McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge,” said Tim Cooper, Fish and Wildlife Service Manager of the Texas Chenier Plain Refuge Complex. “It helps protect the largest continuous estuarine marsh complex on the Texas coast, and provides habitat for dozens of migrating bird species, including large numbers of waterfowl. The project’s benefit to refuge marshlands also helps inland communities and infrastructure by reducing and mitigating storm surge from tropical storms and hurricanes.”
“Jefferson County is extremely appreciative of the GLO, TCEQ RESTORE Program, NFWF, and NRDA Texas TIG,” said County Judge Jeff Branick of Jefferson County. “Their investment in the project helps restore a vital ecosystem, preserves the Chenier Plain for recreational fisherman, hunters, and birdwatchers and protects the people and nationally significant energy security and Department of Defense assets of Southeast Texas from hurricane storm surge events. I am extremely grateful to the staff of the GLO who have overseen the procurement and construction of this project.”
“NFWF congratulates the Texas General Land Office on the completion of the largest beach and dune restoration project ever implemented in the state of Texas,” said Jeff Trandahl, executive director and CEO of NFWF. “McFaddin Beach supports coastal bird populations that depend on its habitat for breeding and overwintering, and it greatly contributes to the resilience of nearly 140,000 acres of sensitive coastal ecosystems on the Texas Chenier Plain. GLO’s successful efforts to bring together a diverse array of funding partners to implement this regional-scale solution has resulted in a final product that will have significant benefits far beyond the Texas border.”
“The McFaddin Beach Restoration Project is a product of multiple organizations committing to restoring 14.5 miles of shoreline for the protection of vital marshlands,” said Steven Schar, the Governor’s appointed designee for the RESTORE council. “I’m grateful that the RESTORE Act’s allocation of $10 million for this project will ensure coastal resiliency in the region and I look forward to the continued work with our coastal partners to improve the Texas coast.”
