The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are now set to move forward with the planning phase for an Ike Dike barrier project in Texas, as part of a $31 billion coastal barrier project running along several hundred miles of the Texas coast; this all thanks to a recently approved bill by the US Senate, referred to as the Water Resources Development.
The Ike Dike barrier project, which was named after the destructive hurricane that devastated Galveston Island in 2008, is intended to provide some protection for the Texas coast around Galveston against the rising waters. This will be the largest section of the entire coastal barrier project, providing a tall seawall and expanded sand dunes. Funding for the project still needs approval from the senate.
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Features of the Ike Dike barrier project
The Ike Dike barrier project would be a huge concrete gate system spanning almost 2 miles from Galveston Island to Bolivar Peninsula, with gates designed to minimize the surge into Galveston Bay by about 30 to 60 percent depending on the track and intensity of the hurricane. The development plans include huge floating gates on artificial islands, with towers rising above 100 feet on both sides of each floating gate. This will also accommodate more vertical gates with the ability to lower into the water during storms.
According to the U.S Corps, construction on the gates for the Ike Dike barrier project could take about 18 years, with an estimated $16 billion price tag. The Idea for installing the floating gates was conceived by the Marine sciences Professor, Bill Merrell from the Texas A&M University in Galveston, who studied several methods through which the ship channel could be protected after the 2008 Hurricane Ike disaster.
The Lt. General of U.S Corps Engineers, Scott Spellmon, stated in a report that the Ike Dike barrier project would alter the topography of Galveston Island in several ways and also covers the restoration or creation of about 1,400 acres of habitat. The project will feature unnatural barriers or breakwaters, running for up to 100 miles to offer protection against surges from storms.
