The Harris County Flood Control District has begun construction to complete two 2018 Bond Program-funded stormwater detention basins in the Clear Creek watershed of south Harris County that together will provide safe storage for more than 566 million gallons of excess stormwater.
Construction started in mid-April on the final phase of the South Belt Stormwater Detention Basin, located on Mud Gully/Beamer Ditch (HCFCD Unit A120-00-00) near Beamer Road and South Fork Boulevard. Construction also has begun to construct the Dagg Stormwater Detention Basin on Clear Creek (HCFCD Unit A100-00-00) at Dagg Road near Christia V. Adair Park. Both basins are part of a $16.9 million construction contract awarded by Harris County Commissioners Court on January 28, 2020.
The work will excavate more than 1.1 million cubic yards of material from the South Belt basin (HCFCD Unit A520-03-00), and remove 50,000 cubic yards from a nearby Dixie Farm Road site where it had been mistakenly placed in the floodplain of Clear Creek nearly two years ago. The Flood Control District bought the Dixie Farm Road site earlier this year so that the inappropriate fill could be removed and the site could be investigated for additional stormwater detention benefits.
Pairing the two construction projects in one bid is intended to extend 2018 bond funding because, in this case, it is more financially efficient to do a larger project. Additionally, the Flood Control District will save approximately $22 million by using a portion of the South Belt excavated material as fill for the Dagg Road basin (HCFCD Unit A500-08-00), resulting in lower disposal costs and savings versus commercially acquired riprap fill. Safety considerations require filling in a 50-foot-deep portion of the water-filled pit at the Dagg Road basin. Doing so will not reduce the capacity of the Dagg Road basin to hold excess stormwater because the storage area is above the water level to the top of the basin’s banks.
The Dagg Road basin will include floating islands for stormwater treatment – a first for Harris County. The floating islands will be anchored to the floor of the basin and planted with specialty plant species whose root systems will help filter impurities. The Dagg Road basin will be part of a demonstration project to determine what types of islands can withstand floodwater fluctuations as well as provide effective stormwater quality treatment.
Both projects are expected to be complete in Spring 2022. They are separate from, but complement the Clear Creek Federal Flood Risk Management Project, which is now in design, by providing additional mitigation for planned channel conveyance improvements.
ABOUT THE HARRIS COUNTY FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICT
The Harris County Flood Control District provides flood damage reduction projects that work, with appropriate regard for community and natural values. With more than 1,500 bayous and creeks totaling approximately 2,500 miles in length, the Flood Control District accomplishes its mission by devising flood damage reduction plans, implementing the plans and maintaining the infrastructure. To learn more about the Flood Control District, visit www.hcfcd.org.