Problems
Causes of subsidence of the land in Houston
Houston is the 10th fastest sinking city in the world with a rate of 1.95 centimeters per year. Parts of Houston are sinking much faster rate of two inches per year. Any kind of underground movement can cause land to sink. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the subsidence in the Houston area is primarily caused by the pumping of groundwater out of aquifers. As the water is removed, the sediment contained in the aquifer compacts and leaves less space to hold water in the future. This is usually an irreversible process. Researchers found that population growth in the suburbs has led to excessive groundwater extraction in those areas. Similar subsidence issues were found in downtown Houston and suburbs to the southeast of the city in previous years, but groundwater regulation has slowed the sinking of the land. Subsidence in Mont Belvieu appears to be related to the heavy withdrawal of oil and natural gas reserves in that area.
Gallery
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Timelines
2023
November
“The Disappearance of Cities on US Coasts,” a peer-reviewed study published in the journal Nature, shows that subsidence is particularly pronounced along the Gulf Coast, where sea level rise is accelerating. This exacerbates future flood risks in Houston areas such as Freeport, Galveston, Port Arthur and Texas City, according to the study. Researchers from Brown University, Virginia Tech and institutions in Canada, England and India studied the potential impacts of subsidence in 32 U.S. cities. They found that hundreds of thousands of residents and properties across the country will face the threat of flooding by 2050 when sea levels are projected to rise at least 10 inches along the U.S. coastline. Sea level rise along the Gulf Coast has historically accelerated over the past decade and is occurring much faster than in other parts of the world. “Even if climate change mitigation efforts succeed in stabilizing temperatures in future decades,” the study authors add, “sea levels will continue to rise as a result of the oceans' continued response to past warming.” On the Gulf Coast, subsidence is projected to account for about 23–35% of total flooding by 2050, higher than on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. “Although flood control structures provide significant protection to coastal areas, their effectiveness is not guaranteed,” the study authors wrote. “Consideration of flood control systems in itself may only represent a temporary solution.”
2020
On September 20, Tropical Storm Beta made landfall on Houston. Over a foot of rain had fallen in some areas around Houston, leaving roadways flooded and motorists stranded.
2019
In September, Tropical Storm Imelda is a devastating tropical cyclone that caused massive and breaking flooding in Houston. The city received record rainfall with 9.18 inches of rain.
2017
On August 17, Hurricane Harvey, a tropical cyclone, caused catastrophic flooding in Houston as a result of heavy rains. Hurricane Harvey dropped five feet of rain on the city, floodwaters killing 16 people. Tens of thousands of homes in and around Houston were half flooded, and thousands of people sought emergency shelter from the wind and rain.
2001
June 4 Tropical Storm Allison roared into Houston and caught the city by surprise, dropping more than three feet of rain in some areas and causing deadly flooding. The storm dumping historic amounts of rainfall over Housto.