Erosion and accretion of the Galveston Bay System when Hurricane Alicia struck in 1983 are well 
documented (12). Compared with Carla, a class IV storm, Alicia was a class III storm (12). In this 
storm, the eye passed over San Luis Pass. The beach level of West Beach landward of the prestorm 
vegetation line was lowered about 3 feet by erosion, and the average vegetation-line retreat was 
nearly 80 feet. Loss of sand for this part of the prestorm beach terrain was 883,750 yards 3 . The largest 
possible erosion in the shortest time from a potential hurricane needs to be part of future Galveston 
Bay management. Beyond the significance of geologic processes, the effects of Hurricane Alicia on 
beachfront properties are especially important to landowners and coastal managers. 
Recommendations 
Although we know much about the physical setting of the Galveston Bay System, conditions that 
impact people should be widely and repeatedly monitored. For example, the geology and geochem¬ 
istry of Galveston Bay was sampled only once, in 1976. Resampling and reanalyses are needed to 
examine human impacts on the chemistry of Galveston Bay further. Continued monitoring of water 
chemistry, salinities and nutrients is the key to the healthy existence of the bays and their animal 
populations. 
Modem high-resolution seismic profiles of the shallow bay sediments would provide valuable 
information for permitting future constmction. Improved physical measurements of water circula¬ 
tion, especially currents and tides, would enhance bay system management. No long-standing 
current meters have ever been emplaced at the inlets; salinity and nutrient gradients indicate the need 
for long-term monitoring of currents in the Houston Ship Channel and at other significant sites. The 
EPA predictions of expected (drastic?) sea-level rise need immediate attention; ground releveling 
and tide gauge measurements are required to predict the response of various types of shorelines to 
increased sea-level changes. 
Shoreline changes and sediment influxes that reflect losses of both private property and public 
wetlands need a new cycle of monitoring in order to develop a holistic management approach. We 
need additional information on the impacts of major storms for planning emergency responses, and 
we need to improve predictions of coastal evolution with respect to potential sea-level rise. 
Selected References 
1. Salvador, Amos, 1987. LateTriassic-JurassicPaleogeography and Origin of Gulf of Mexico Basin; 
American Association of Petroleum Geologists Bulletin, v. 71, pp. 419-451. 
2. Murray, G.E., Rahman, A.U., and Yarborough, Hunter, 1983. Introduction to the Habitat of 
Petroleum, Northern Gulf Coastal Province; Gulf Coast Section, Society of Economic 
Paleontologists and Mineralogists Foundation, 4th Annual Research Conference, pp. 34-38. 
3. Morton, R.A., Jirik, L.A. and Foote, R.Q., 1985. Structural Cross Sections, Miocene Series, Texas 
Continental Shelf; The University of Texas at Austin, Bureau of Economic Geology, 8 p., 3 figs., 
17 pis. 
4. Galloway, W.E., Ewing, T.E., Garrett, C.M., Tyler, N., and Bebout, D.G., 1983. Atlas of Major 
Texas Oil Reservoirs; The University of Texas at Austin, Bureau of Economic Geology, Special 
Report, 139p. 
5. Fisher, W.L., McGowen, J.H., Brown, L.F., Jr., and Groat, C.G., 1972. Environmental Geologic 
Atlas of the Texas Coastal Zone—Galveston-Houston Area; The University of Texas at Austin, 
Bureau of Economic Geology, 91p; and -Fisher, W.L., McGowen, J.H. and Proctor, C.V., Jr. 
(Barnes, V.E.), 1982. Geologic Atlas of Texas—Houston Sheet; The University of Texas at Austin, 
Bureau of Economic Geology, map. 
6. Bernard, H.A., Major, C.F., Jr., Parrott, B.S. and LeBlanc, R.J., Sr., 1970. Recent Sediments of 
Southeast Texas—A Field Guide to the Brazos Alluvial and Deltaic Plains and the Galveston 
Barrier Island Complex; The University of Texas at Austin, Bureau of Economic Geology, 
Guidebook 11,132 p. 
7. McGowen, J.H. and Morton, R.A., 1979. Sediment Distribution, Bathymetry, Faults and Salt 
Diapirs on the Submerged Lands of Texas; The University of Texas at Austin, Bureau of Economic 
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