Texas City TX Is Sinking

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A new study published in Nature, “Disappearing cities on US coasts,” examined areas near cities along the coast sinking faster than expected. Texas City, TX, near Galveston, is on the new list.

Other Cities Sinking —New York And Miami

Making Money On Climate —Hedging Risk

The authors wrote, “…coastal cities often experience sinking land (so-called land subsidence), whose compounding effect contributes to relative SLR, exacerbating coastal hazards and risks.” So-called “vertical land motion” pushes land future into the water as the water rises.

The New York Times reports, “While the Gulf Coast experiences many of the most severe cases of subsidence — parts of Galveston, Texas, and Grand Isle, La., are slumping into the ocean faster than global average sea levels are rising — the trend can be found all along the United States shoreline.” Texas City is part of the evaluation of places along the Gulf Coast.

1900 Hurricane

For those who recall the facts of the 1900 Galveston hurricane, the most deadly in US history, its most tremendous force would have hit Texas City. However, Texas City was not incorporated until 1911. A hurricane hit Texas City in 2008 when Hurricane Ike came ashore. The dike that protects the city saved it from complete disaster.

The Nature article that included Texas City is a sign that although it has lasted through Gulf hurricanes, it cannot remain a city in its existing form. Why? Seas are rising too quickly as land movement pushes them into the sea.