05-29-2003 Bayport Expansion Review Committee Meeting

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.. e e I. that the Shoal Point site was the environmentally least damaging practicable alternative site in the Galveston Bay system. Bayport was evaluated as an alternative to Shoal Point. At this time, the best site for a container port in the Galveston Bay system - Shoal. Point - has been issued a pennit. The movement of containers into and out of the Houston region is secure. The question before us now is - should a permit be issued for Bayport, in addition to the permit already issued for Shoal Point? The FEIS for the Bayport facility, and additional documents regarding the wetlands at that site, strongly argue NO. 2. 56 Foot Deep HouSton Ship Channel GBCP A and other groups have been concerned since the inception of this project about whether or not the Houston Ship Channel would need to be deepened in order to accommodate the larger container ships that are in use today in maritime commerce. These larger vessels.are called post-Panamax ve.ssels and require a channel d.epth of from 45 to 53 feet. . . The permit application submitted by the Port of Houston Authority has always shown the area adjacent to the docks being dredged to 56 feet. GBCP A and others have argued that the Port is clearly planning to bring deeper draft vessels into Bayport than can be accommodated by the current Houston and Bayport Ship Channels. The Bayport channel is currently at 40 feet of depth and the Houston Ship Channel is now being dredged to 45 feet. The third revised permit application, issued in conjunction with the FEIS, now shows diagrams of cranes that are labeled as being designed to unload post- Panamax vessels. Additionally, the FEIS mentions post-Panamaxvessels in several places. In order for post-Panamax vessels to come to Bayport, the Bayport channel must be dredged deeper than 40 feet, and the Houston Ship Channel also must be deepened, most likely to 56 feet. That is ten feet deeper than the current authorization. A deeper channel will allow much more salt water from the Gulf of Mexico to enter the Galveston Bay system. Salinity is the greatest threat to the ecological health and integrity of the Galveston Bay system. Today, more and more freshwater is taken from our rivers for water supply, reducing the amount that comes to our bays. The Galveston Bay system is productive because it is an estuary, an area where salt and fresh water come together. Salinity is the enemy of the oysterreefs. Salinity is the enemy of the juvenile fish and shellfish that come to the Galveston Bay nursery. .. The reason that Shoal Point in Texas City is an excellent location for a container facility is that a deeper channel in the lower portion of the bay will not cause much addit~onal harm. Shoal Point is near Bolivar Roads, the pass connecting Galveston Bay with the Gulf of Mexico. Salinity is naturally higher in the lower portions of the bay. Bayport is in the upper bay system. If we invest $1.2 billion in Bayport, we will immediately hear cries from the Port of Houston Authority that we need a deeper ship channel in order to be competitive - to protect our $1.2 billion investment. 2