TEXAS
Permian Basin produced water pilot expands
The Texas Railroad Commission has approved an expansion of a pilot program allowing treated produced water from oil and gas operations to be used for irrigation of non-food crops in the Permian Basin, as drought conditions continue to strain regional water supplies.
Houston Ship Channel dredging moves forward
The Army Corps of Engineers has advanced the next phase of deepening and widening the Houston Ship Channel, a project supporters say will allow larger vessels to transit safely while critics continue to raise concerns about dredge material disposal sites.
LOUISIANA
Coastal master plan funding secured
Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority has secured additional funding for its 50-year coastal master plan, which aims to rebuild wetlands and barrier islands lost to erosion and subsidence along the state’s rapidly disappearing coastline.
Mississippi River sediment diversion update
Construction continues on a large-scale sediment diversion project intended to rebuild land in the Barataria Basin, with state officials reporting the project remains on schedule despite ongoing litigation from local fishing interests.
MISSISSIPPI
Gulf Coast oyster restoration continues
Mississippi’s Department of Marine Resources has reported encouraging early results from its latest round of oyster reef restoration in the Mississippi Sound, part of a broader regional effort to rebuild reefs damaged by decades of freshwater diversions and storms.
Back Bay of Biloxi stormwater project
Biloxi officials have broken ground on a stormwater management upgrade for the Back Bay area, aimed at reducing the chronic flooding that has affected low-lying neighborhoods during heavy rain events.
ALABAMA
Mobile Bay seagrass monitoring expands
The Alabama Department of Environmental Management has expanded its seagrass monitoring program in Mobile Bay, tracking recovery in areas that have seen water quality improvements following recent wastewater infrastructure upgrades.
Gulf State Park dune restoration
Alabama’s Gulf State Park has completed a dune restoration project using sand bypassed from nearby channel maintenance dredging, continuing a beneficial-use approach to coastal management officials say they intend to replicate elsewhere along the state’s shoreline.
