Texas has seen high economic growth and development and the Houston-Galveston region is no exception to this trend. Natural areas have been replaced by impervious surfaces like concrete, thereby removing forests, prairies, and wetlands. These natural ecosystems provide valuable services by absorbing rainfall, slowing down run-off, and stemming the flow from tidal surges. Using authoritative data from federal agencies, HARC has analyzed the data to identify important changes across the region.

1. Houston-Galveston &
Southeast Texas
Land Cover Change
Bill Bass, GISP
Photo: © Bill Bass | BillBassPhoto.com

2. Texas Population Growth
Image Courtesy: Wikipedia
Graph: Jill Cowan/Dallas Morning News
Over 1,000 people per day increase.
Migrations account for 47%.
• Area between Dallas-
Houston-San Antonio
is seeing the largest
growth
• Not just major cities,
but exurbs in close
proximity to
economic opportunity
Dallas
Houston
San
Antonio
Austin

3. Imperviousness
Sources: US Census, USGS NLCD

4. Imperviousness
Sources: US Census, USGS NLCD

5. Imperviousness
Sources: US Census, USGS NLCD

6. Imperviousness by County
2001-2016
Source: USGS NLCD

7. Imperviousness by Watershed
2001-2016
Source: USGS NLCD

8. Imperviousness 2001
Source: USGS NLCD

9. Imperviousness 2006
Source: USGS NLCD

10. Imperviousness 2011
Source: USGS NLCD

11. Imperviousness 2016
Source: USGS NLCD

12. Imperviousness 2001
Source: USGS NLCD

13. Imperviousness 2016
Source: USGS NLCD

14. Land Cover by Watershed
1996-2010
Source: NOAA C-CAP
*2016 C-CAP Land Cover still pending release.

15. Developed Areas 1996
Source: NOAA C-CAP

16. Developed Areas 2001
Source: NOAA C-CAP

17. Developed Areas 2006
Source: NOAA C-CAP

18. Developed Areas 2010
Source: NOAA C-CAP

19. Developed Areas 1996
Source: NOAA C-CAP

20. Developed Areas 2010
Source: NOAA C-CAP

21. Land Cover by Watershed
1996-2010
Source: NOAA C-CAP
*2016 C-CAP Land Cover still pending release.

22. Wetland Areas 1996
Source: NOAA C-CAP

23. Wetland Areas 2001
Source: NOAA C-CAP

24. Wetland Areas 2006
Source: NOAA C-CAP

25. Wetland Areas 2010
Source: NOAA C-CAP

26. Wetland Areas 1996
Source: NOAA C-CAP

27. Wetland Areas 2010
Source: NOAA C-CAP

28. Historical & Harvey Flows
Cypress Creek & I-45

29. Impacts of Increased Runoff
Photo: © Bill Bass | BillBassPhoto.com

30. More Runoff = More Sediments
Photo: © Bill Bass | BillBassPhoto.com

31. More Runoff = More Sediments
Photo: © Bill Bass | BillBassPhoto.com

32. Galveston Bay Watershed
• The Galveston Bay watershed
is approximately 24,000
square miles.
• Approximately 13.8 million
people, half the population of
Texas (27.4 million), live in the
Galveston Bay watershed.1
1
U.S. Census, ACS 2017

33. Changing Landscapes
Forested to Farmland to Developed
Source: Houston-Galveston Area Council, Circa 2000

34. Changing Landscapes
Forested to Farmland to Developed
Source: Houston-Galveston Area Council, Circa 2014

35. Changing Landscapes
Forested to Farmland to Developed
Source: Houston-Galveston Area Council, Circa 2017

36. Changing Landscapes
Residential Development
Source: Houston-Galveston Area Council, Circa 2000

37. Changing Landscapes
Residential Development
Source: Houston-Galveston Area Council, Circa 2014

38. Changing Landscapes
Residential Development
Source: Houston-Galveston Area Council, Circa 2017

39. Changing Landscapes
Large Commercial/Mixed Use
Source: Houston-Galveston Area Council, Circa 2000

40. Changing Landscapes
Large Commercial/Mixed Use
Source: Grand Central Park

41. Thoughts & Conclusions
• Texas economic growth driving increased
development and loss of ecosystems
• Solving flooding issues isn’t just about
engineered solutions, but also using green
infrastructure
• Regulations only work for incorporated areas
where ordinances and zoning can be applied;
most of growth is in unincorporated areas
• Non-profit lands trusts are key to helping
preserve land; work with willing land owners

42. GIS.HARCresearch.org
www.linkedin.com/in/wmbass
Bill Bass, GISP
Geospatial & Analytics Sr. Manager
(281) 364-6087
BBass@HARCresearch.org
www.instagram.com/billbassphoto