Caption: Sen. Ted Cruz with port leadership and stakeholders.

Sen. Ted Cruz voiced strong support for the Houston Ship Channel Expansion Project, after being briefed in early October by Port Houston leadership and top executives representing industry along the channel. Sen. Cruz said the widening and deepening project is important to Texas and the nation and lauded the leadership of Port Houston and the business community for their willingness to work together to get the project completed in an expedited manner.

He called the Port of Houston “the crown jewel of the Texas economy,” and said expansion of the
channel will trigger the creation of even more jobs. The project has been the focus of a four-year
study conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Port Houston that is expected to be
finished next spring. Once the study is completed, Congress will consider authorizing the project in the
Water Resources Development Act legislation in 2020. At the same time, Port Houston and industry
stakeholders are working together to garner support for the project’s authorization by Congress as
well as collaborating on possible funding and other strategies to accelerate the project.

During the meeting, Port Commission Chairman Ric Campo provided an overview of the project for
Sen. Cruz. Industry representatives joined the port in advocating for the importance of the expansion
project.

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Texas ports play a crucial role in the state’s economy, creating nearly 1.4 million jobs and a total of over $68 billion in federal, state and local tax revenue in the U.S., and about $7 billion of state and local taxes are supported in the state of Texas.

Those impacts were highlighted at the Texas Ports Association “Navigating the Future” conference which was held in Austin Feb. 20.  Port Houston joined other port leaders, government officials and maritime industry professionals at the event.

Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar, Brandon Creighton, Chairman of the Texas Senate Committee on Ports, Texas State Senator Larry Taylor and Congressman Michael Cloud were among the officials participating in the conference.  The conference panels highlighted how ports facilitate various aspects of the state and nation economy, such as agriculture, energy and manufacturing. One panel focused on port security as well as their importance to deploying U.S. armed forces.

“Texas ports are our gateway to trade and economic growth,” stated Chairman Brandon Creighton in his opening remarks.  “As larger vessels transit our waterways and call on our ports, Texas must be ready to accommodate them as well as allow for all users to compete and maintain our economic lead over the rest of the country.”

Roger Guenther, Port Houston’s Executive Director who is also the current President of the Texas Ports Association, served as the conference’s Master of Ceremonies.

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Ryan Fisher, the second highest ranking civilian in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, visited the greater Port of Houston Aug. 21.

The visit highlighted the national economic impact of the Port of Houston and how the region’s employers and manufacturers rely on the Houston Ship Channel, a federal waterway.

“The Houston Ship Channel is a national asset,” said Port Houston Executive Director Roger Guenther. “The channel supports the top U.S. port in foreign waterborne tonnage and is critical to the nation’s exports and energy security.”

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is responsible for maintaining and improving the Houston Ship Channel in partnership with the Port of Houston Authority, which serves as the local sponsor of the waterway.

Also in attendance was Enterprise Products Partners’ Chief Executive Officer Jim Teague and the Houston Pilots’ Presiding Officer Mark Mitchem, who provided industry perspectives on the importance of the waterway.

Enterprise Products has the largest ethane export port facility in the country located on the Houston Ship Channel. The Port of Houston has the largest petrochemical complex in the nation. The Houston Pilots are the professionals who navigate deep-water vessels into and out of the Port of Houston.

Port Houston staff highlighted the port’s recent terminal investments, petrochemical exports, Asian import growth and wharf cranes. The Corps officials also took a Port of Houston fireboat tour and visited Enterprise Products’ Hydrocarbons Terminal.

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Port Houston welcomed Major General Scott Spellmon, deputy commanding general for civil and emergency operations with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and his staff for a briefing and tour of the public and private terminals on the Houston Ship Channel.  

The Major General and Corps representatives met with Port Houston Executive Director Roger Guenther and Channel Development Director Mark Vincent, who discussed the Houston Ship Channel, project economics and Hurricane Harvey impacts.

Port Houston is partnering with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on a mega-study evaluating the feasibility of modifying the Houston Ship Channel, including widening and deepening of the waterway and other improvements.

Houston’s energy, security and infrastructure makes the channel one-of-a-kind with more than 190 public and private facilities along it.

“Shoaling on the Houston Ship Channel impacts not only shipping, marine operations and navigation, but it also affects our stakeholders, American consumers and the economy,” said Vincent.

Port Houston works closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to facilitate commerce and maintain navigation of the channel. Sediment control is of significance for resiliency efforts in light of future storm and flood events.

“Ships are getting larger,” Vincent noted. “Planning for future improvements is key, and we want to make sure we have the adequate consideration for the mitigation of potential risks. We continue to work with the Corps to model the mega-study to meet the needs of the waterway.”

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Port Houston hosted a briefing for the City of Houston's Chief Resiliency Officer Stephen Costello June 29.  Port staff highlighted the impacts of Hurricane Harvey on the Houston Ship Channel and discussed the need for strategies to minimize the effects of future flood and rain events on the waterway.

Much of the floodwaters resulting from Harvey that devastated the region’s homes and businesses flowed into the Houston Ship Channel, depositing hundreds of millions of tons of sediment and debris. 

Port Houston worked closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers immediately after the storm to assess sedimentation impacts in the Houston Ship Channel and to mobilize available dredges to address the most critical areas as quickly as possible.

Port Houston is the local non-federal sponsor for the Houston Ship Channel and works with the Corps maintaining and growing the waterway.  Similarly, the Corps is responsible for many of the flood mitigation projects in the region.  Port officials and Costello discussed the critical nature of both understanding and planning how the flood mitigation system interacts with the Houston Ship Channel.

Port Chairman Janiece Longoria has discussed the impact of Hurricane Harvey at numerous public meetings and highlighted the importance of planning for weather-related incidents.

“We must also look at improvements to this waterway that make it more resilient and reduce the impacts of future weather events,” the chairman said during a recent meeting. “Part of the recovery is to harden this asset to make it better for the future.”

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Caption: U.S. Congressman Tom Ball

During the 1800s, U.S. Representative Tom Ball spent countless hours trying to convince his colleagues to support a deep-water port for Houston. In July of 1870, Congress designated Houston as a potential port – passing a bill chartering the Houston Ship Channel, and essentially marking the beginning of the Port of Houston.

In September 1900, a devastating hurricane slammed into Galveston, Texas, leaving behind one of the worst natural disasters in American history. More than 8,000 people lost their lives.

Tom Ball proposed a revolutionary concept. He suggested that Houston and the federal government share the cost of dredging a deep-water channel to Houston. The Congressional Rivers and Harbors Committee voted unanimously to accept the idea, which became known as the Houston Plan – and a nearby Texas city, Tomball, was later named after the congressman.

In 1911, a campaign was launched to persuade voters to approve $1.25 million in bonds to pay for the local share to dredge the waterway. Voters approved the measure by a margin of 16 to one, and with it the formation of the Harris County Houston Ship Channel Navigation District (today’s Port of Houston Authority) to issue those bonds.

The Houston Ship Channel has been an economic engine for over a century and remains the busiest and most productive waterway in the nation.  Each year, the channel hosts more than 8,000 vessel calls and 200,000 barge movements.  It supports the largest petrochemical complex in the nation and is critical to our country’s energy and economic security. Port Houston is the non-federal sponsor of the Houston Ship Channel. 

Learn more about Port Houston's history here.

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Caption: Capt. of the Port Kevin Oditt (Photo Credit: Greater Houston Port Bureau)

The Port Houston team attended the Greater Houston Port Bureau's Commerce Club luncheon featuring U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the Port Kevin Oditt Jan. 11. First responders, air and boat rescues, and greater Houston Ship Channel area closures were topics discussed at the event.

The U.S. Coast Guard supported the Gulf Coast region heavily during Hurricane Harvey. With additional support from across the country, the Coast Guard was able to station its rescue and recovery teams in Houston, Corpus Christi and Beaumont/Port Arthur prior to the major storm. Capt. Oditt commended the response from private citizens, industry, and local and federal agencies for their part in ensuring the safe reopening of the region’s ports.

Port Houston’s fireboats were some of the first vessels out to evaluate the waterway conditions, noted Oditt.

One of the challenges that the Coast Guard experienced this time unlike past storms was the unexpected use of social media for rescue operations from residents in flooded areas as well as its 911 emergency calls. The lessons learned in Texas were able to be used shortly thereafter for recoveries from Hurricanes Irma and Maria.

The U.S. Coast Guard Sector Houston-Galveston is a critical stakeholder and partner with Port Houston as well as the many private facilities along the Houston Ship Channel. It is the principal federal agency responsible for maritime safety, security and environmental stewardship in U.S. ports and waterways.

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Port Houston Chairman Janiece Longoria provided a “State of the Port” address at the Greater Houston Partnership’s luncheon Nov. 16.

Longoria gave a presentation highlighting the Houston Ship Channel and its impacts from Hurricane Harvey as well as discussed its continued importance to the economy in a fireside chat conversation with Enterprise Products’ CEO and President, Jim Teague.

“Our ship channel industry immediately banded together to navigate through uncharted waters, and to restart this economic engine, put people back to work and get commerce flowing,” Longoria said about the major flooding event that occurred in August.

The Houston Ship Channel supports the largest petrochemical complex in the nation and is critical to the country’s energy and economic security. The Houston Ship Channel remains the busiest and productive U.S. waterway, hosting more than 9,000 vessel calls and 200,000 barge movements.

“As the local sponsor of the Houston Ship Channel, we are constantly working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to improve the channel that serves more than 150 public and private facilities, supporting $265 billion of economic activity annually,” added Longoria.

The Chairman also reported that Port Houston’s eight public terminals, which provide diverse cargo opportunities, handle 20 percent of the overall tonnage of the greater Port of Houston.

Enterprise Products has the largest ethane export facility in the world, located at Morgan’s Point.

The event was held at the Royal Sonesta Hotel in the Houston Galleria.

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The Gulf Coast Chapter of the Western Dredging Association (WEDA) conducted its annual meeting Nov. 16 at the Hotel Galvez in Galveston, marking the first time the event has been held outside of New Orleans. The chapter represents the Gulf States of Texas, Alabama, Florida (West Coast), Georgia (Western), Louisiana and Mississippi. Over 180 industry professionals attended, including Port Houston’s channel development department.

The meeting provided a forum for the exchange of information of interest to the dredging industry and its associates, partners and stakeholders. Representatives from all areas of the industry, including regulatory, resource agencies, contracting and manufacturing attended to discuss dredging economics, benefits, technologies and current issues.

“This conference brought the big picture of the entire Gulf region and gave our port an opportunity to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on more placement options for non-federal dredged material,” said Mark Vincent, director of channel development for Port Houston. The information presented provided the audience a full scope of Corps’ federal responsibilities along the Gulf Coast and an overview of the agency’s dredging program, noted Vincent.

This year’s event was merged with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Galveston District’s annual dredging meeting. The American Association of Port Authorities contributed updates on the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) and legislative matters related to ports and harbors.

“We are thrilled to bring the annual WEDA meeting to Texas as there are numerous maintenance and new work dredging projects around the Houston-Galveston area. This was one of WEDA’s largest events with a diverse mix of international attendees,” said Maxie McGuire, 2016 President WEDA Gulf Coast Chapter.

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