Coastal Inlets of Texas, USA

Abstract

Presently, 16-17 permanent inlets connect the inland coastal waterways and rivers to the Gulf of Mexico on the 560-km long coast of Texas. Processes controlling inlet stability in Texas are typically more complex than those acting on the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean coasts of the United States, where the astronomical tide dominates. The tide on the Texas coast is predominantly or fully diurnal and with small range; however, the large surface areas of most Texas bays produce large tidal prisms. Wind is strong throughout the year, either from the southeast in summer or as episodic northeasterly fronts in autumn and winter. Non-astronomical seasonal variations in water level are comparable to the tidal range of Texas bays. Creation of inlets on the Texas coast is ongoing for environmental, commercial, and recreational reasons, and this paper discusses the status and challenges posed to inlet creation, stability, and maintenance.

Seasonal Change in Nearshore and Channel Morphology at Packery Channel, A New Inlet Serving Corpus Christi, Texas

“…Water level along the Texas coast is controlled by the astronomical tide and seasonal change in Gulf of Mexico water level, and it is also strongly influenced by local wind (Price, 1952;Kraus, 2007). A seasonal or low-frequency fluctuation in water level occurs with highs in September and October, and lows in January and February.…”

Long-Term Inlet Stability of a Multiple Inlet System, Pass Cavallo, Texas

“…The evidence present herein demonstrates that it is not likely that Pass Cavallo will close in the near future. Simple theory indicates that tidal inlets on diurnal tide coasts require a weaker mean-maximum current for cross-sectional channel area stability (Kraus 2007), and the location of Pass Cavallo in the southwest corner of Matagorda Bay works to its favor in having an increased ebb flow due to wind prevalent from the north and northeast in the autumn and winter.…”

“…1 yields V mm = 1.06 m/sec, in agreement with empirical observations for, at least, many semi-diurnal inlets. For a tide that is predominantly diurnal, the tidal period is 89,424 sec, giving V mm = 0.53 m/sec (Kraus 2007). There are relatively few inlets worldwide in a diurnal tidal setting, making empirical validation of this result difficult.…”

Estuarine Suspended Sediment Dynamics: Observations Derived from over a Decade of Satellite Data

“…In Corpus Christi Bay, the main channel is 14 m deep, spans the length of the estuary in an east-west direction and is maintained for navigation (Kraus, 2007). Other shallower dredged channels are scattered throughout these estuarine systems (Figure 2).…”