Texas Coastal Geology

Richard L. Watson, Ph.D.

P.O. Box 1040 Port Aransas, TX 78373
361-749-4152 send email

Richard@TexasCoastGeology.com


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Reports by Richard L. Watson, Ph.D. and others.

Some of these documents are very large pdf files so be patient.


Resume of Richard L. Watson, Consulting Geologist



Why is a sand bar forming in Packery Channel?


Click here to read Dr. Watson's invited article titled "Evaluation of coastal response to Hurricane Ike through pre-storm and post-storm aerial photography"  in Shore and Beach Vol. 77, No. 2, 49-59.  This entire issue of Shore and Beach, the Journal of the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association is dedicated to description and analysis of the damage to the Louisiana and Texas coasts by Hurricane Ike which came ashore on September 13, 2008.  See also paper by Kraus & Lin below.




Geologic framework of the eolian sand plain and the Central Flats of Laguna Madre and circulation between northern and southern Laguna Madre


Protect the Natural Dune Seawall and Prevent Hurricane Destruction at Port Aransas, Texas


Severe Erosion of Texas Beaches Caused by Engineering Modifications to the Coast and Rivers (abs.)


Brochure for Continuing Education Conference --- Texas Coastal Law; How to keep Beach-Goers, Developers and Regulatory Agencys Happy


Modern Depositional Environments and Processes, Northern and Central Padre Island, Texas
Ralph E. Hunter, Richard L. Watson, Gary W. Hill and Kendal A. Dickinson



Nearshore Surface Currents, Southeastern Texas Gulf Coast
Richard L. Watson and E. William Behrens


Shoreline Determination Along Gently Sloping Shores: A Multidisciplinary Approach 

Richard L Watson, John W. Tunnell, Jr., William N. Lothrop, and Shannon H. Ratliff

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A new supreme court decision changes the application of the Open Beaches Act.  
Read the following links in addition to the papers on Coastal Law!
The Texas Supreme Court has revisited Severance and published its opinion on March 30, 2012.  It has reached the same conclusion that there is no basis in Texas law or history supporting a rolling public easement on the dry beach between the vegetation line and the state/private boundary of Mean High Tide for Common Law grants (after 1836 under Texas law.  This probably will result in the same determination for Civil Law grants (Spanish and Mexican) for the dry beach between the vegetation line and Mean Higher High Tide.  This result pretty much guts the open beaches act and public access to the dry beach after erosion, sea level rise, or subsidence moves the shoreline inland.  Original Texas Supreme Court decisions on the Severance case and validity of a rolling easement under the Open Beaches Act.

Click here to go to a page about the Texas Open Beaches Act and the Severance decision 

limiting public access to the beaches



 Coastal Law and the Geology of a Changing Shoreline, March 2006, updated to include section on poor beach and dune management practices

Coastal Law and the Geology of a Changing Shoreline, March 2005 (see above paper, March, 2006 for latest version)


The Civil Law Littoral Boundary in “Non-Tidal” Areas of the Texas Coastal Waters:
Mean Daily Higher High Water Level (MDHHWL)
An Analysis for Texas Land Surveyors

William N. Lothrop, RPLS, P.O. Box 255
Sarita, Texas  78385
(361) 294-5246


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Why is a sand bar forming in Packery Channel?


Severe Beach Erosion at Surfside, Texas

Caused by Engineering Modifications to the Coast and Rivers


Severe Beach Erosion Caused by Permanent Sand Loss Through Rollover Fish Pass, Bolivar Peninsula, Texas


Shoaling Analysis, Leggett Light Channel


 Origin of Shell Beaches, Padre Island, Texas


Origin of Shell Beaches, Padre Island, Texas (complete Master's thesis 45 mb pdf file)


The Relationship Between Littoral Drift Rate and the Longshore Component of Wave Energy Flux (Complete Ph.D. dissertation 70 mb pdf file)


Geological History of the South Padre Island Wind-Tidal Flats


Flying History and Geology Tour, Port Aransas to Matagorda Island, Texas


Shallow Water Wells and Groundwater Port Aransas, Mustang Island, Texas


Oso Bay Tide and Discharge Study,
prepared for Archie Walker Engineering and the City of Corpus Christi, TX




Long and Short Term Erosional history of Mustang and Padre Islands
with Probably Impact due to Oil Spill Clean-Up Procedures



Corpus Christi Water Exchange Pass 1972-1976
by E.William Behrens and Richard L. Watson (MSword)



Corpus Christi Water Exchange Pass 1972-1976
by E. William Behrens and Richard L. Watson (PDF)




POSTGLACIAL SUBMERGENCE SOUTH TEXAS COAST


Modified Rubey's Law Accurately Predicts Sediment Settling Velocities


Differential Sorting of Pelecypod Valves in the Swash Zone by E.William Behrens and Richard L. Watson

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Reports and papers by others


The following two papers are superb presentations on Texas Coastal Boundary law and its history.

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Shoreline Boundaries Part I:  Legal Principles  -- Shannon H. Ratliff

Ratliff Law Firm P.L.L.C.



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Shoreline Boundaries:

Current Controversies Involving Erosion and Subsidence"

Shannon H. Ratliff, Esq. and Richard A. Fordyce, Esq.

The Ratliff Law Firm

Austin


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The Civil Law Littoral Boundary in “Non-Tidal” Areas of the Texas Coastal Waters:
Mean Daily Higher High Water Level (MDHHWL)
An Analysis for Texas Land Surveyors

William N. Lothrop, RPLS, P.O. Box 255
Sarita, Texas  78385
(361) 294-5246


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Supreme Court of Texas Coastal Boundary Decision Kenedy Memorial Foundation v State of Texas sets boundary in non-tidal waters at Mean Daily Higher High Water Level


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Corps of Engineers Permit to Close Rollover Pass


Texas Supreme Court, Nov. 5, 2010  Rolling Easements of Open Beaches Act do not exist!


Dissenting Opinion, Texas Supreme Court, Nov. 5, 2010  Rolling Easements of Open Beaches Act do not exist!


Estuarine Wetland Habitat Transition Induced by Relative Sea-Level Rise on
Mustang and North Padre Islands, Texas: Phase I

by
James C. Gibeaut, Eleonor Barraza, and Boris Radosavljevic
This paper shows sea level rise for the next 90 years projected from past sea level rise as measured by the Rockport and Galveston tide gauges.  
It shows projected future maps of shorelines and marshes.



A Line in the Sand: Balancing the Texas Open Beaches Act and Coastal Development
by
Eddie R. Fisher and Angela L Sunley, Texas General Land Office


Hurricane Ike along the upper Texas coast: An introduction
by
Nicholas C. Kraus and Lihwa Lin

in Shore and Beach Vol. 77, No. 2, 3-8


National assessment of shoreline change: Part 1
Historical shoreline changes and associated coastal land loss along the U.S. Gulf of Mexico

by
Robert A. Morton, Tara L. Miller and Laura J. Moore
U.S. Geological Survey Open File Report 2004-1043




Click here to see a Packery Channel Monitoring update presented to the City of Corpus Christi in April 2010.
The report was prepared by Diedre D. Williams of TAMUCC (Note: this is a pdf file of over 3mb)


Beaches and Dunes and the sand cycle (GLO)


The Texas Coastal Hazards Atlas, Volume 2 (Brazos River to Corpus Christi Bay)



Changes in Gulf Shoreline Position, Mustang and North Padre Islands, Texas,  by
Gibeaut, Hepner, Waldinger, Andrews, Gutierrez, Tremblay, Smyth and Xu



Dune Protection and Improvement Manual for the Texas Gulf Coast (GLO)



Twenty one years of shoreline changes on Mustang Island Gulf Beach by Tony Amos (this file is huge (13mb), download it)



Sand Sources and Distribution Patterns for Gulf Coast Beaches:
Focus on Upper Texas Coast Sand Budget
J. William Soderman, Ph.D.

Presented at the Coastal Texas 2020 Technical Erosion Conference
sponsored by the Texas General Land Office
September 16, 2005



Papers and articles about Port Aransas and South Texas

THE OWNERSHIP AND EARLY CULTURAL
HISTORIES OF MUSTANG ISLAND
John Guthrie Ford, Ph.D.


Fabulous Port Aransas by Miller Harwood and W.A. Scrivener, 1949, A History of Port Aransas, Aransas Pass, Copano, Corpus Christi and the surrounding area with emphasis on the development of shipping and waterways.  This is presented in two parts.  Be patient, Part 1 is 8 megabytes and Part 2 is 14 megabytes.
Part 1
Part 2