Background

Hundreds of environmental, business, and government organizations in the Gulf-Houston Region have collaborated to create the Gulf-Houston Regional Conservation Plan (Gulf-Houston RCP). This plan involves implementing an ecosystem resilience plan for the following counties: Brazoria, Chambers, Galveston, Fort Bend, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery and Waller County.

The three key goals of this project are:

1. Increase the amount of protected/preserved land of the region from 9.7% land coverage to 24% land coverage by 2040
2. Increase nature-based stabilization techniques such as low-impact development, living shorelines, and bioswales, to 50% of land coverage by 2040
3. Provide research and advocacy for an increase of 0.4% annually in air quality offsets through carbon absorption in native soils, plants, trees, and oyster reefs throughout the region

Project

The Gulf-Houston RCP has four key initiatives:

Riparian Corridor Protection Initiative (RCPI)

The RCPI sets goals to protect riparian corridors within the nearly 50 watersheds that feed into Galveston Bay. Regional nonprofits, municipal and county agencies and pertinent state/federal agency staff work together to achieve these goals.

The Prairie Conservation Initiative (PCI)

The PCI’s purpose is to restore and preserve the tens of thousands of acres of coastal prairie remnants in the RCP area. Through the initiative, federal, state, and local governments, nonprofits, and private landowners will collaborate to restore degraded prairie and to educate the general public about the importance of these prairies.

Galveston Bay Habitat Acquisition & Easement Initiative (GBAE)

The aim of GBAE is to restore coastal habitat in the RCP area such as wetlands, bottomlands, and estuaries that lead into the Bay and Gulf Coast.

Galveston Bay Oyster Reefs & Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative (GBOMB)

GBOMB aims to restore, create, and preserve Galveston Bay oyster reefs, inland rookery islands, and other bird habitat in the RCP area.

Community Impact

Thousands of individuals, hundreds of businesses and every government agency in the 8-county region take part to help achieve the goals of the plan in a number of ways. They are increasing protection and preservation of the land by creating and maintaining parks, natural areas, riparian corridors, detention basins, reservoirs, etc. They are contributing to nature-based community resilience by installing nature-based stabilization techniques on their property. They are engaging in carbon sequestration by planting native trees and plants and creating living shorelines. In addition to the restoration, protection, and enhancement of natural areas, the Gulf-Houston RCP also provides an online interactive database of all targeted nature-based infrastructure projects taking place in the region.