Wednesday, June 26, 2013

DSHS Revises Fish Consumption Advisories for Houston and Galveston Area Waters

June 26, 2013

 

DSHS Revises Fish Consumption Advisories for Houston and Galveston Area Waters

 

The Texas Department of State Health Services has issued revised fish consumption advisories for certain Texas waters. The following advisories are in effect:

 

San Jacinto River – Houston Ship Channel: People should limit or avoid the consumption of all species of fish and blue crab from the Houston Ship Channel, the San Jacinto River below the Lake Houston Dam and all contiguous waters north of Highway 146. The advisory was issued after laboratory testing of fish and blue crab from the San Jacinto River and Houston Ship Channel indicated that concentrations of dioxins, pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls or PCBs exceeded DSHS health guidelines. Regular or long-term consumption of fish or blue crab from these waters may increase the likelihood of long-term health risks.

 

Women of childbearing age and children under 12 years old should not consume any species of fish or blue crab taken from the San Jacinto River and Houston Ship Channel. Women past childbearing age and adult men should consume no more than one meal per month.

 

Galveston Bay: DSHS has removed the consumption advisory for spotted seatrout from a portion of Galveston and Trinity Bays and all of East and West Bays. The area is south of a line from Red Bluff Point to Five-Mile Cut Marker to Houston Point. Laboratory testing of spotted seatrout from these areas indicated that concentrations of dioxins and PCBs have decreased to acceptable levels and no longer pose a significant health risk.

 

Upper Galveston Bay: Consumption of spotted seatrout from the Upper Galveston Bay continues to pose a health risk and the advisory remains in effect for this area. Concentrations of dioxins and PCBs exceed DSHS health guidelines. Regular or long-term consumption of spotted seatrout from these waters may result in adverse health effects. An advisory also remains in effect for blue crab from this area.

 

Women of childbearing age and children under 12 years old should not consume spotted seatrout from Upper Galveston Bay. Women past childbearing age and adult men are advised to consume no more than one meal per month. Upper Galveston Bay includes the portion of the Galveston Bay estuary north of a line from Red Bluff Point to Five-Mile Cut Marker to Houston Point.

 

An advisory for all species of catfish remains in effect for all of the Galveston Bay System.

 

To view the map, advisories and other information about fish testing, go to www.dshs.state.tx.us/seafood.

 

-30-

 

(News Media Contact: Christine Mann, DSHS Assistant Press Officer, 512-776-7511.)

 

 

News Release

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

 

 

GULF OF MEXICO 2013 DON'T EAT THE FISH MERCURY WARNING

 

 


 

 

 
 

flounder float white side up in Galveston Bay

 
 


 

 
 

 

TSS

Sunday, June 9, 2013

RICE DIKE AND IKE DIKE ARE RIVALS NO MORE, AND HAS BACKED OFF THE PROPOSAL OF A 20-MILE 25 FOOT LEVEE ALONG SH 146

RICE DIKE AND IKE DIKE ARE RIVALS NO MORE, AND HAS BACKED OFF THE PROPOSAL OF A 20-MILE 25 FOOT LEVEE ALONG SH 146 THAT WOULD HAVE HELPED DESTROYED OUR BAYSIDE COMMUNITIES
 
 
 
 
What will protect us from the next surge?


 
By Harvey Rice | May 30, 2013 | Updated: May 30, 2013 6:35am A house is engulfed in flames as water and waves inundate homes on Galveston Island as Hurricane Ike approaches the coast Sept. 12, 2008. Photo: Smiley N. Pool, Staff / Houston Chronicle
 
 
 
1 of 1 A house is engulfed in flames as water and waves inundate homes on Galveston Island as Hurricane Ike approaches the coast Sept. 12, 2008. Photo: Smiley N. Pool, Staff / Houston Chronicle Photo: Mayra Beltran, Houston Chronicle
 
 
 
The destruction wrought by Hurricane Ike in 2008 focused attention on the need for storm surge protection for the Galveston-Houston area. Researchers at Rice University found that had Ike struck slightly farther west on Galveston Island, it would have inundated scores of chemical plants and refineries. Ike would have shut down the source of 40 percent of the nation's jet fuel, 27 percent of its gasoline and 42 percent of its chemical feed stocks.

 
To protect industry and residents from another Ike, or worse, several storm-surge protection efforts are underway, including the well-known Ike Dike concept.
 
 
 
Funds from state

 
The Gulf Coast Community Protection and Recovery District, created in 2010, is on the verge of securing $3 million to $4 million from the state to complete its study, said Galveston County Judge Mark Henry, district chairman.

 
Galveston County commissioners agreed to accept the money. The other participating counties - Harris, Brazoria, Chambers, Jefferson and Orange - must approve before Henry can call a meeting to get the study underway.

 
Other efforts, meanwhile, are gaining momentum.
 
 
 
The Ike Dike concept developed by Bill Merrell, a marine sciences professor at Texas A&M Galveston, envisions a system of levees and gates spanning Galveston Island and the Bolivar Peninsula. It has the backing of eight cities in Galveston County, said Bob Mitchell, president of the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership.

 
The partnership in March began raising the $1.5 million needed to complete studies to convince Congress that the Ike Dike is practical and can be completed in two years for $4 billion to $6 billion.
 
 
 
Mitchell said the partnership has raised about $700,000 for the studies and expects to raise the balance by July.

 
Several studies are underway, including storm modeling at Jackson State University in Jackson, Miss. Scientists at Delf University, The Netherlands, and Texas A&M Galveston are working on storm barrier design studies, Merrell said.

 
Landscape architects are working on ways to meld the storm barrier into the landscape and turn it into recreational areas.

 
Rivals no more
 
 
 
Once considered a competing proposal to the Ike Dike, a scheme by the Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disasters Center, known as the SSPEED Center, at Rice University is now being put forward as complementary to its onetime rival.

 
Jim Blackburn, a center member and environmental law professor at Rice, said a storm surge gate at the Hartmann bridge can be built quickly for $1 billion to protect the chemical plants and other industry near the Houston Ship Channel.
 
 
 
"We believe it should be built rapidly and does not interfere with the project for the Ike Dike and other efforts," Blackburn said.
 
 
 
Because of a lack of local support, the center is backing off proposals for a 20-mile levee along Texas 146 to protect the Clear Lake area and a levee extending from the Galveston Seawall to encircle the city's urban core, Blackburn said.

 
Progress is also being made on a proposal by the Rice center to create the Lone Star Coastal National Recreation Area to foster a tourism-based economy that can bounce back after a storm. Houston businessman John Nau is heading the effort to gather support for the 130-mile long area spanning the coasts of Matagorda, Brazoria, Galveston and Chambers counties.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
RICE DIKE AND IKE DIKE ARE RIVALS NO MORE, AND HAS BACKED OFF THE PROPOSAL OF A 20-MILE 25 FOOT LEVEE ALONG SH 146 THAT WOULD HAVE HELPED DESTROYED OUR BAYSIDE COMMUNITIES

 
re-IKE DIKE PROPOSED BY RICE UNIVERSITY hangs our Bayshore communities out to dry, IN 25 FEET OF WATER, to make way for WATERFRONT RECREATION $$$

 
GREAT NEWS NEIGHBORS OF SUNNY SAN LEON, BACLIFF, BAYVIEW, KEMAH, SEABROOK, AND LA PORTE, TEXAS. Apparently we spoke, and they listened. If you all remember correctly, back when all this first broke around October 2012, my old buddy Dear Steve and myself got to nosing around after we got wind of this proposed seawall along SH 146 that would have been a backstop to any flood surge that came through, and would have wiped us all out east of SH 146, to make way for Recreation Areas for boating, swimming, fishing, hotels, casino’s and such, where our homes were to have once stood. The Rice dike plan even had a drawing of this area east of SH 146, showing our homes literally gone, and in place of our homes, was instead a waterfront recreational area, put into place where our homes once stood, all the while protecting the high end folks west of the railroad tracks on SH 146 and the surround Clear Lake area, just to manufacturing a high end water park for the rich to play in, on our properties. some folks call it taking ‘by eminent domain’, I call it stealing.

 
see RICE DIKE proposal draw the bayside communities right out of the picture on page 11 of 16 in the Learning the Lessons of Hurricane Ike: Preparing for the Next Big One SSSPPEED ;
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
SO THEN, I wrote to Dr. Merrell concerned about all this ;
 
 
 
===============================================
 
 
 
From: Terry S. Singeltary Sr.
 
Sent: Tuesday, October 09, 2012 5:30 PM
 
To: William Merrell
 
Cc: Cherie Coffman
 
Subject: Re: Ike Dike question ?
 
fantastic! thank you for your kind reply Sir, and explanation for the layperson such as me. many thanks, I like your proposal much, much, better Sir, considering my backyard is Galveston Bay here in Bacliff, 77518 shoreline. with that rice university plan, the shorelines from Kemah to San Leon and property values there from would tank and the next big one, we would all be marsh land. course, it would not matter much anyway, because that big toxic dredge island I have to look at everyday now, you know the one they propose to double in size now, well all that would be in our houses. ...what were they thinking. ...thanks again.
 
with kindest regards,
 
terry
 
 
========================================
 
 

 
From: William Merrell
 
Sent: Tuesday, October 09, 2012 5:08 PM
 
To: Terry S. Singeltary Sr.
 
 
Cc: Cherie Coffman
 
Subject: RE: Ike Dike question ?
 
Again - the Dike you describe is proposed by Rice University. It has nothing whatsoever to do with the Ike Dike. The Ike Dike protects everyone in the Bay because it is along the coast. You can verify this and learn the details of the Ike Dike by going to our website http://www.tamug.edu/ikedike/
 
 
==============================================
 
 
 
 
 
From: Terry S. Singeltary Sr. [mailto:flounder9@verizon.net]
 
 
Sent: Tuesday, October 09, 2012 5:00 PM
 
To: William Merrell
 
 
Cc: Cherie Coffman
 
 
Subject: Re: Ike Dike question ?
 
 
Greetings again Dr. Merrell,
 
 
Sir, I had a question.
 
 
I did not have any ideas, other than the fact, I am concerned and confused on one of rumored proposals of Ike Dike, and we wanted to know the truth, and I was told, you were the person to go to, and my question was as follows ;
 
 
i heard that one of the potential designs for the ike dike, would have everyone living south of the Kemah bridge on hwy 146, and everyone east of hwy 146 there from, i.e. Kemah, Bayview, Bacliff, and San Leon, all these fishing communities would be EAST OF SAID IKE DIKE, as the said IKE DIKE would be built west of hwy 146, thus leaving everyone east of 146 to be left for marsh land, as any hurricane after said IKE DIKE built would leave these fishing communities as marsh lands due to any IKE DIKE built west of hwy 146, is any of this true?
 
 
is there any proposal on the table to eliminate the Kemah, Bayview, Bacliff, and San Leon shore lines from the Ike Dike?
 
 
is the scenario of said rumor, I proposed above, is this one of the proposals?
 
 
as home owners, property owners, and business owners, we are concerned, and we have a right to know if this is a proposal or not?
 
 
a simple yes or no answer will do. ...
 
 
thank you,
 
 
kind regards,
 
 
terry
 
 
====================================
 
 
 
 
 
From: William Merrell
 
 
Sent: Tuesday, October 09, 2012 4:38 PM
 
 
To: Terry S. Singeltary Sr.
 
Cc: Cherie Coffman
 
 
Subject: RE: Ike Dike question ?
 
 
The 146 dike is proposed by the SSPEED Center at Rice. I agree with your ideas on it. The Ike Dike is a coastal spine which would protect everyone. Details on website http://www.tamug.edu/ikedike/ Best regards, Bill
 
 
William Merrell
 
George P Mitchell Chair
 
Texas A&M University at Galveston
 
 
Po Box 1675
 
 
Galveston, Texas 77553-1675
 
 
409-740-4732 work
 
 
409-740-4787 fax
 
 
================================================
 

 
 
From: Terry S. Singeltary Sr. [mailto:flounder9@verizon.net]
 
 
Sent: Tuesday, October 09, 2012 12:50 PM
 
To: William Merrell
 
Subject: Ike Dike question ?
 
 
Greetings Dr. Merrell,
 
I am a bit concerned and confused, and hoping you might be able to help straighten out any confusion on the IKE DIKE.
 
i heard that one of the potential designs for the ike dike, would have everyone living south of the Kemah bridge on hwy 146, and everyone east of hwy 146 there from, i.e. Kemah, Bayview, Bacliff, and San Leon, all these fishing communities would be EAST OF SAID IKE DIKE, as the said IKE DIKE would be built west of hwy 146, thus leaving everyone east of 146 to be left for marsh land, as any hurricane after said IKE DIKE built would leave these fishing communities as marsh lands due to any IKE DIKE built west of hwy 146.
 
 
is any of this true ?
 
 
can you please show me where all the said potential designs and drawings might be for the public to view on any said IKE DIKE ?
 
 
thank you,
 
 
kindest regards,
 
 
terry
 
 
===============================================
 


 
 
Then, Dear Steve et al at the Seabreeze held a community meeting down in San Leon, where Dr. Merrell et al came down to speak about the TEXAS AM Ike Dike sometimes in January 2012, and then Dear Steve and myself both voiced our concerns with Jim Blackburn via the Galveston Bay foundation et al.


 
please see today’s Sunday Houston Chronicle June 2, 2013, Hurricane guide magazine section, page X3, under RIVALS NO MORE ; Thank God, the proposed part of the infamous RICE DIKE, that would have built a 25 foot levee along SH 146, has been withdrawn from said proposal. SNIP... Once considered a competing proposal to the Ike Dike, a scheme by the Severe Storm Prediction Education and Evacuation from Disasters Center, known as the SSPEED Center, at Rice University is now being put forward as complementary to it’s onetime rival.
 

 
 
Jim Blackburn, a center member and environmental law professor at Rise, said a storm surge gate at the Hartmann bridge can be built quickly for $1 billion to protect the chemical plants and other industry near the Houston Ship Channel.
 

 
 
“We believe it should be built rapidly and does not interfere with the project for the Ike Dike and other efforts,” Blackburn said.

 
 
 
Because of a lack of local support, the center is BACKING OFF PROPOSALS FOR A 20-MILE LEVEE ALONG TEXAS 146 TO PROTECT THE CLEAR LAKE AREA, and a levee extending from the Galveston Seawall to encircle the city’s urban core, Blackburn said.
 

 
 
end...TSS



 
 
The Seabreeze


 
 
June 7, 2013


 
We Spoke, They Listened ...

 
 
 
It's a little early to pop champagne corks, but it looks like there are no longer two competing plans to protect the Galveston Bay area from massive storm surge in the next major hurricane.
 
 
 
In the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, which struck here nearly five years ago, there has been a lot of research done to find ways to minimize the damage that will occur the next time a large storm strikes.
 
 
 
Much of that research was carried out at Rice University's Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disasters Center, known as the SSPEED Center.
 
 
 
The experts at Rice concluded that as bad as Ike was, it could have been much worse. According to their measurements, if the storm had struck just a couple of miles west of where it did, there would have been flooding at refineries which would have shut off over 40% of the US supplies of jet fuel and chemical feed stocks. Over one-quarter of the nations gasoline supply would have also been shut down for a significant period of time.

 
As we reported in previous issues of the Seabreeze, the experts at Rice University proposed building a dike that would have run for 20 miles down Highway 146. That proposal would have effectively sacrificed the Bayside communities to any hurricane, while protecting those west of Highway 146. The plan called for a levee- 25 feet high which would protect the Clear Lake area and League City. The study presumed that after a major storm erased the communities of San Leon, Bacliff, etc., the land where we live could be turned into a huge recreational area. Waterparks, hotels, and other commercial ventures would operate where our communities had been destroyed.
 
 
 
Of course, that idea didn't set well with the locals. There was so much anger and opposition to the idea, that Rice has now backed down from that proposal and come up with a different idea.
 
 
 
The new plan would call for building a huge storm gate at the Fred Hartmann Bridge to protect the refineries and the Port from storm surge. According to Jim Blackburn, an environmental law professor at Rice, the gate system could be built for about $1 billion. The new plan omits any mention of a dike extending down Highway 146. "We believe it should be built rapidly and does dot interfere with the project for the Ike Dike and other efforts," Blackburn said.
 
 
 
So, the Rice crew has listened to locals like Terry Singeltary (who-has given them no rest) and numerous citizens who expressed their outrage at the plan. They have abandoned the idea of letting our towns be wiped out. Mr. Singeltary and our editor, Steve Hoyland worked together to publicize the plans and rally citizens to make their voices heard.
 
 
 
The SSPEED Center and Blackburn are still pushing for a huge recreational area to be created. What they have in mind is an enormous Iand-grab that would encompass a half-million acres of coastal land. According to their final report, "A concept that emerged involved rethinking and perhaps redefining the coastal economy to capitalize on the recreational and economic value of these low-lying lands."
 
 
 
The report goes on to say that "A survey of this area revealed that some of the best bird-watching and coastal kayaking in the United States exists within the low-lying areas of the upper Texas Coast." So, the plan is to displace the existing economy and people, and replace them with bird-watchers and kayakers. Really? The eggheads are "rethinking and redefining" our coastal economy for the benefit of kayak jockeys and birds? I find that disturbing.

 
The conclusion of the SSPEED report is that "What is lacking is an institutional and governmental framework to organize the latent economic potential of these low-lying areas. As such, the SSPEED Center is proposing to create a recreational area of such importance that it would be worthy of national recognition." The proposed recreational area would take in most of Bolivar Peninsula.zhe Texas -City Prairie, and-coastal areas extending as far south as Lake Jackson and Freeport.
 
 
 
However, the good news is that the Rice group is no longer proposing to sacrifice the Bayside communities to the rain gods. There are no longer two competing plans on the table. This leaves the proposals made by Dr Merrill at Texas A&M University in Galveston. Merrill proposes using the Dutch system, which would protect the entire bay. This system has been used in New Orleans since Katrina, and uses a system of gates and barriers to keep storm surge from entering internal waters completely.
 
 
 
Merrill's proposal would include storm gates across the mouth of the ship channel and San Luis Pass that could be sealed in the event of a major storm. The Seawall would extend west on Galveston Island to San Luis Pass. On the Bolivar Peninsula, the highway would be elevated to provide a barrier all the way to Sabine Pass. Storm surge could effectively be locked out of the entire bay using this type of system.

 
The estimated total cost of creating such a system and building it is in the $6 billion range, so it won't be done without federal support. The Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership has started raising $1.5 million to complete studies to convince congress that the Ike Dike is a practical idea, and well worth the money to protect the entire region. The partnership has already raised half of that amount, and expects to reach the goal within the next several weeks.
 
 
 
The withdrawal of the Rice plan is a victory for people who live on the west side of Galveston Bay. Thanks to everyone who raised hell about it, it worked. Now let's get our politicians to get on board with the Ike Dike. (GATOR)
 
 
 
The SeaBreeze
 
 
 
281-235-8885
 
 
 
======================
 
 
 
see history of all this here;



 
Sunday, December 9, 2012
RICE DIKE PROPOSAL COULD DESTROY GALVESTON BAY BAYSHORE COMMUNITIES
 
 
 
 
 
 
October 10, 2012
IKE DIKE PROPOSED BY RICE UNIVERSITY hangs our Bayshore communities out to dry, IN 25 FEET OF WATER, to make way for WATERFRONT RECREATION $$$
 
 
 
 
 
 
Monday, April 15, 2013
Hurricane Ike: 5 Years Later Conference Rice Dike Proposal September 24-25, 2013
 
 
 
 
 
Terry S. Singeltary Sr. P.O. Box 42 Bacliff, Texas USA 77518 flounder9@verizon.net
 
 

Friday, June 7, 2013

Big Increase VIBRIO PARAHAEMOLYTICUS Along Texas Coast

NOT GOOD !


"It is along the whole coast of Texas,"




-----Original Message-----


From: ProMED-mail


Sent: Wednesday, June 05, 2013 10:56 AM




Subject: PRO/EDR> Vibrio parahaemolyticus - USA: (TX)


VIBRIO PARAHAEMOLYTICUS - USA: (TEXAS)


**************************************


A ProMED-mail post <http://www.promedmail.org>


ProMED-mail is a program of the International Society for Infectious Diseases <http://www.isid.org>


Date: Tue 4 Jun 2013 Source: KRIS-TV [summ., edited]




A big increase in a specific bacterial infection found in warm salt water has health officials on alert. The bacterium is called _Vibrio parahaemolyticus_. "It is along the whole coast of Texas," explained Dr William Burgin, Jr with the Corpus Christi-Nueces County Public Health District.


The whole coast of Texas usually sees 2-7 cases per year. In Corpus Christi, in just 3 weeks, there already have been 3 cases.


The bacterium is found in warm salt water that means you can pick it up either by swimming in infected water with an open wound or by eating the shellfish that inhabits that water.


Dr Burgin with the health department cautions that it is young people who have picked up the infection; one from eating infected food, the other 2 from being in the water.


Having cuts or scrapes will put you at a higher risk. "You never know, you may go in with no scratches, but out there in the water you step on something and that breaks the skin," Burgin explained. That's why it's important to stay aware, get out if you get cut, and do something as simple as wearing water shoes at the beach to help prevent those cuts and scrapes in the water.


[Byline: Janine Reyes]


-- Communicated by: ProMED-mail


[The state of Texas can be located on the HealthMap/ProMED-mail interactive map at <http://healthmap.org/r/3vBj>. Corpus Christi and Nueces County in southeastern Texas can be seen on the map at <http://geology.com/county-map/texas.shtml>. - Sr.Tech.Ed.MJ


It is important to stress that _Vibrio parahaemolyticus_ is naturally present in marine waters and does not imply sewage contamination, as would be the case with _Salmonella_ sp. or _E. coli_. It is most common in warmer waters such as those of the American Gulf Coast as in this case, but warmer waters in more northern climates can also be associated with oyster-associated _V. parahaemolyticus_.


In 2005, a New England Journal of Medicine report highlighted this infection linked to even Alaskan oysters: McLaughlin JB, DePaola A, Bopp CA, et al:


Outbreak of _Vibrio parahaemolyticus_ Gastroenteritis Associated with Alaskan Oysters.


N Engl J Med 2005; 353(14): 1463-70 (full article available at <http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa051594>).


"Abstract ---------


Background: _Vibrio parahaemolyticus_, the leading cause of seafood-associated gastroenteritis in the USA, typically is associated with the consumption of raw oysters gathered from warm water estuaries. We describe a recognized outbreak of _V. parahaemolyticus_ infection associated with the consumption of seafood from Alaska.


Methods: After we received reports of the occurrence of gastroenteritis on a cruise ship, we conducted a retrospective cohort study among passengers, as well as active surveillance throughout Alaska to identify additional cases, and an environmental study to identify sources of _V. parahaemolyticus_ and contributors to the outbreak.


Results: Of 189 passengers, 132 (70 percent) were interviewed; 22 of the interviewees (17 percent) met our case definition of gastroenteritis. In our multiple logistic-regression analysis, consumption of raw oysters was the only significant predictor of illness; the attack rate among people who consumed oysters was 29 percent. Active surveillance identified a total of 62 patients with gastroenteritis. _V. parahaemolyticus_ serotype O6:K18 was isolated from the majority of patients tested and from environmental samples of oysters. Patterns on pulsed-field gel electrophoresis were highly related across clinical and oyster isolates. All oysters associated with the outbreak were harvested when mean daily water temperatures exceeded 15.0 deg C (59 deg F) (the theorized threshold for the risk of _V. parahaemolyticus_ illness from the consumption of raw oysters). Since 1997, mean water temperatures in July and August at the implicated oyster farm increased 0.21 deg C per year (P less than 0.001 by linear regression); 2004 was the only year during which mean daily temperatures in July and August 2004 at the shellfish farm did not drop below 15.0 deg C (59 deg F).


Conclusions: This investigation extends by 1000 km (621 mi) the northernmost documented source of oysters that caused illness due to _V. parahaemolyticus_. Rising temperatures of ocean water seem to have contributed to one of the largest known outbreaks of _V. parahaemolyticus_ in the USA." - Mod.LL]


===================================


















TSS