The Gulf Coast Protection District (GCPD) is launching a groundbreaking research initiative to evaluate whether blue carbon credits can help fund critical coastal protection infrastructure along the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) in Galveston County. If successful, the approach would be the first of its kind in the United States.
Tackling Coastal Erosion
The Texas Coast has seen an escalation in marsh erosion due to continuous vessel traffic wakes, rising sea levels, and on-land development. While the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Coastal Texas Project has identified the Galveston Bay Shoreline and Island Protection element as a priority for protecting the GIWW with living shoreline structures, federal and state funding for construction isn’t complete. This new study seeks to bridge that gap through innovative market-based financing.
A New Funding Pathway
GCPD has partnered with Texas A&M University at Galveston’s Institute for a Disaster Resilient Texas and Rice University’s Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disaster (SSPEED) Center to evaluate the feasibility of funding living shoreline construction using “blue carbon” credits. The 12-month project will examine 30 miles of West Bay and 20 miles of East Bay shoreline within Galveston County.
Blue carbon credits are generated by protecting coastal marshes from inundation and erosion, preserving the carbon stored in marsh soils. By constructing living shorelines, the project would prevent the release of wetland carbon that would otherwise be lost to rising seas and barge wakes. Credits would be certified under the BCarbon blue carbon protocol, a peer-reviewed methodology developed specifically for coastal wetlands.
Research Leadership
The project will be led by Principal Investigators Dr. Sam Brody of Texas A&M University and Jim Blackburn of Rice University. The team also includes Dr. Russell “Rusty” Feagin, whose Texas A&M soil carbon mapping of Galveston County wetlands forms the scientific foundation for the analysis, along with coastal planner Lalise Mason and SSPEED Program Manager Chris Ordoñez. BCarbon, the non-profit carbon registry founded by Blackburn, will support technical evaluation.
Broader Implications
Beyond the Galveston Bay Shoreline and Island Protection element, the implications could reshape how Texas funds coastal resilience at scale. A successful model in Galveston County could serve as a template for other state and federal agencies to apply across the entire GIWW and other vulnerable stretches of the Texas Coast. The project simultaneously advances wetland protection, supports commercial fisheries, safeguards private property, and maintains the GIWW as a vital artery of Texas coastal commerce.
By creatively combining science, engineering, and finance, GCPD aims to unlock a new pathway for protecting Texas’s most vulnerable coastal communities, where traditional funding has fallen short.
Learn More about the Coastal Texas Research Council and how Texas-based and international research institutions are helping to advance the Coastal Texas Project.
