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. Increasing the current 15% in protected/preserved land in the eight-county region to 24% of land coverage by 2040 (See Gulf-Houston RCP’s September 2020 Press Release on progress).
2. Increasing and supporting the region-wide land management efforts to install nature-based stabilization techniques for 1.25 million acres out of the 4.9 million acres in the eight county Gulf-Houston region by 2040. Nature-based stabilization techniques include low-impact development, living shorelines, and bioswales.
3. Providing research and advocacy for an increase of 4% annually in air quality offsets through carbon absorption in native soils, plants, trees, and oyster reefs throughout the eight county region. 431,821 land acres have been enhanced and restored with funds received for projects that were part of the Gulf-Houston Regional Conservation Plan.

Project

The Gulf-Houston RCP is a long-term collaborative of environmental, business, and governmental entities working together to implement an ecosystem continuity and connectivity plan for the region. Houston Wilderness facilitates the eight-county Gulf-Houston RCP, which collectively identifies the region’s conservation priorities, provides GIS and other data-based analysis of the diverse ecology to promote and enhance environmental-based policies on land and water use in the region, and serves as a collaborative convener and facilitator of issues of concern in the region – such as riparian and estuarine erosion and sediment control, invasive species management, native wildlife and migration habitat enhancement, and increased outdoor recreational opportunities. Read more about the Gulf-Houston RCP project goals, and the work done by Houston Wilderness on Port Houston’s Bayport Berm here.

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.