East matagorda bay foundation help

[gsb]

Got word that the EMBF is looking for some help regarding a proposed cut from the old colorado river to the far west part of E. matty.

I don't have a personal connection, but know that a lot of FWE members would be interested in protecting this bay.

Check out the letter below, and the website information at http://www.eastmatagordabayfoundation.com/

Dear Friends,

On Tuesday, February 02, 2010, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers -
Galveston District (USACE) released a Public Notice regarding Permit
Application No. SWG-2005-01312 which deals with the Southwest Corner Cut
into East Matagorda Bay from the old Colorado River channel. The
deadline for public comment is March 05, 2010. Please go to
www.swg.usace.army.mil/reg/pn.asp to view the public notice, plans, and
mitigation.

I am appealing to those of you who love fishing, crabbing, birding and
general recreation in East Matagorda Bay as well as all other parties
interested in preserving the natural state of the bay and its resources.
The East Matagorda Bay Foundation needs your help in demanding a Public
Review of the Southwest Corner Cut project (aka. Rawlins Cut). Please
read the communication below and the attachments above.

Essentially, this project will open up a 100' wide tidal channel between
East Matagorda Bay and the old Colorado River channel at the extreme
west end of the bay. There has been very little scientific review by
qualified personnel of the potential for adverse environmental,
hydrological and marine biological impact on a bay system that TPWD
considers healthy and pristine. It is imperative that we the public
respond by sending the attached form letters to USACE and TCEQ (Texas
Commission for Environmental
Quality) requesting a public review of the project accordingly. Print
them out, sign, date and mail each to the addresses noted. Again, time
is of the essence as March 5 is the deadline for comments from the
public and the Corps will make its determination based on the weight of
public comment received. So please don't wait! Thank you in advance
for your support of this very important matter of concern to all of us
who love Sargent and our 'Bay'.

Captain Gene & Kate Allen
The Caney "Y" Vacation Rentals and
Living Waters Guide Service
Sargent, Texas
979-244-4910 /979-429-7150
Webpage: www.fishmatbay.com
Mailing Address: 2216 CR 201 Bay City, Texas 77414

[plugger]

I made a post about the proposed cut a while back. The Matagorda bay Foundation was against it sighting the potential for housing developement as a result. I think you said it would be a good thing though. I can see the water inflow as beneficial, but not at the expense of having more traffic and south shore housing like the west end of Galveston Island.

[Muddskipper]

Matagorda County get the majority of it's tax money from homes on the water ..... they have gone up on taxes 300X in only a few years on hundreds of properties down there.
The more there are the more money they get.

If it helps raise money for the county, you bet they are going to put it down there.

[Txrex]

Plugger and I had a discussion about this a while back, as he said. The only thing that I am sure of is that this, and a host of other options, have been studied to pieces over the last four or five years by the Corps and other scientific groups. The Sargent area may loose some of their patronage because of this channel as it will give a hydraulic connection to the west end of the bay like exists at Mitchell's Cut on the east end. That does not mean that it will be a bad thing for the bay. Right now the only tidal flow in and out of western EMB is via the man-made ICW. I am still looking for information on any passes in the Matagorda bay system that were closed in 1979 in response to the Ixtoc blowout in Mexico. If there is anyone on FWE that can help me with that info, I would greatly appreciate it.

[Txrex]

I had been discussing this on another board and was given the link below.

http://cirp.usace.army.mil/pubs/pdf/CS07_Texas_Coastal_Inlets-Kraus.pdf

If nothing else, this report shows that there has been extensive study on this project for nearly ten years. It also shows that the proposed SW cut would have very little hydraulic effect on (man made) Mitchell's cut. Reading this I also learned that if we went back to "Mother Nature's" design, we would need to fill in the Colorado River Navigation Channel and Mitchell's Cut and allow the rivers to flood the bays and open up Brown Cedar Cut, Greens Bayou, Spring Bayou and all of the other old natural paths to the Gulf. Plugger, if your looking to stop coastal development, that would do it......