Galveston Bay and the Surrounding 
Area: Human Uses, Production 
and Economic Values 
R. B. Ditton, D. K. Loomis, D. R. Fesenmaier, M. O. Osborn, D. Hollin, J. W. Kolb 1 
MEG WILSON—The Galveston Bay complex is adjacent to one of the most populated areas in 
Texas. It ranks first among urbanized areas in the state (1). With a 1980 population of 2,905,353, the 
Houston Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area (SMSA) ranks second only to the Dallas-Ft. Worth 
SMS A. Houston is the ninth largest SMSA in the U.S. (2). Of the 16 Standard Consolidated Statistical 
Areas (SCSA) in the U.S., Houston-Galveston ranks eighth (2). 
In 1980 nearly 2.8 million people lived in the four counties surrounding the bay (Chambers, 
Brazoria, Galveston and Harris), with 2.4 million in Harris county alone (Table 3.1). These four 
counties account for 75 percent of the population residing within the one-county coastal strata 
adjacent to the Texas coast, and 20 percent of the total state population. In comparison, 1,466,000 
persons (65 percent of the coastal population) lived in the four counties in 1960; this accounted for 
15.3 percent of the state population. Population growth will continue until at least the year 2000, when 
more than four million persons are projected to live in the Texas coastal area (3). At that time, it is 
projected that the four-county Galveston Bay area will account for 77 percent and 20 percent of the 
coastal and total state populations, respectively. 
Total personal income along the Texas coast is also heavily skewed towards the Galveston Bay 
area. Of $42 billion in personal income in the coastal counties in Texas, $35.5 billion (83 percent) is 
accounted for by the four counties surrounding Galveston Bay (Table 3.2). 
The purpose of this paper is to provide information on the extent to which Galveston Bay and its 
adjacent land area are used for various purposes and their respective economic values. In some cases, 
data are not available to demonstrate the extent of present use; data on level of infrastructure or some 
other indicator are used as proxies. Use and value are presented as a percentage of total activity for 
the Texas coast to put Galveston Bay in perspective, and where data are available, changes in 
Galveston Bay use levels and values over time are presented to understand trends. Finally, some 
findings regarding demographics and use are compared with those from other estuaries in the 
United States. In the following paragraphs, information is presented on seven major use categories 
for the Galveston Bay complex. 
Agriculture 
In 1982 there were 1,430,626 acres of farm land in the four counties surrounding Galveston Bay 
(Chambers, Brazoria, Galveston and Harris) or approximately 26 percent of the total farm acreage in 
the 16 Texas coastal counties. Between 1967 and 1982, there was a decrease of 297,374 acres (21 
’R.B. Ditton represents the Texas A&M University Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences; D.K. 
Loomis, Texas A&M University Department of Recreation and Parks; D.R. Fesenmaier, Texas Agricultural 
Experiment Station; M.O. Osborn, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department; D. Hollin, Texas Sea Grant Program; 
and J.W. Kolb, Texas Water Commission. 
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