FEMA Approves Mouth Bar Removal From San Jacinto River

HOUSTON — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has received permission from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to remove the notorious mouth bar left behind from flooding during Hurricane Harvey, according to a press release from Councilman Dave Martin's office.

Crews from the Army Corps of Engineers began the slow process if dredging massive deposits of sand and silt from the San Jacinto River in October after being directed by FEMA to restore the river to pre-Hurricane Harvey conditons.

While work has been ongoing in some sections of the San Jacinto River and is expected to be completed next month, the sand mouth was not among those areas identified in the original order.

Last month, the application for the additional dredge material disposal site and mouth bar removal were submitted by the City of Houston for review by the corps and FEMA.

Martin said state and local leaders appealed to FEMA to expedite their decision while the Army Corps of Engineers was dredging other areas of the river. FEMA officials gave the green light during a meeting in Austin last week, and are currently working with the city and the Army Corps of Engineers to determine how much silt and sand will be removed.

Martin said officials will know this week and plan to begin dredging the sand mouth by mid to late May.

Send your news tips and story ideas to bryan.kirk@patch.com