AUSTIN — Today, Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, M.D. is pleased to announce that a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) has been signed between the Texas General Land Office (GLO) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for design work on the Coastal Texas Project’s Coastwide Ecosystem Restoration measures and the Coastal Storm Risk Management measure on South Padre Island.

The signing of this MOU represents a continued partnership between the GLO and USACE. As the non-federal sponsor of this vitally important project, this step forward highlights the GLO’s commitment to advancing the development of the Coastal Texas Project.

“As someone who spent more than a decade living on the Texas coast, I believe that the Coastal Texas Project is vital to ensuring our communities, wildlife, and habitats remain safe and thriving for generations to come,” said Commissioner Buckingham. "Continuing our partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is crucial to securing this region’s resiliency to natural disasters. As Texas Land Commissioner, I am committed to furthering our education and understanding of storms and their impact on our coastal communities.”

“Today’s signing marks a major milestone in our persistent march to restore and protect Texas’s coastline,” said Col. Rhett Blackmon, SWG district commander. “This collaboration with the TXGLO advances the essential design work necessary to restore critical ecosystems, which will ensure a stronger, more resilient Texas for generations.”

Map that identifies both of the Coastal Texas Project’s Ecosystem Restoration (ER) measures and the South Padre Island Coastal Storm Risk Management (CSRM) measure that the MOU covers

The Coastal Texas Project represents a systemwide risk management strategy for Texas's coastline, employing multiple lines of defense to reduce the risk of coastal storm surges and restore degraded coastal ecosystems. The proposed system of improvements will increase the state’s ability to withstand and recover from coastal storms, adapt to storm surges, and maintain the social, economic, and coastal preservation systems that serve the state and the nation.

The Coastal Texas Project was signed into law through the Water Resources Development Act of 2022 (WRDA) to deliver critical protection from coastal storm surges for the communities, nationally important industries, and vital ecosystems of the Texas coast. The passage of WRDA 2022 authorizes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and its project partners to continue implementation activities.

The GLO is the non-federal sponsor for eight Coastwide Ecosystem Restoration and South Padre Island Beach Nourishment and Sediment Management measures of the Project, which include the creation of 114 miles of breakwaters, 15.2 miles of bird rookery islands, 2,052 acres of marsh, 12.32 miles of oyster reef, and 22.4 miles of beach and dune.

While this MOU is a huge step forward in advancing the Project, additional agreements, such as a Design Agreement and Project Partnership Agreement, will still be needed to serve as the permanent commitment to the design and construction of the Coastal Texas Project. In the interim, this MOU allows for any efforts the GLO is already engaging in to safeguard its ecosystems and vulnerable populations to be credited toward the ultimate cost-share obligations as the non-federal sponsor of Texas's largest ecosystem restoration effort.