Changes in Bay Shoreline Position, West Bay System, Texas

This report presents long-term rates of shoreline change along the bay shorelines of the West Bay system of the Galveston Bay system (Fig. 1). In addition to West Bay, the smaller secondary bays of Drum, Christmas, Bastrop, Chocolate, Jones, and Halls Lake are included in this report. The successive positions of historical shorelines are combined in a linear regression model that provides the average annual rate of shoreline change. Based on previous years, therefore, these rates indicate how the shoreline is expected to advance seaward or retreat landward during the next several decades, making this information useful for coastal planning.

The Bureau of Economic Geology is currently updating shoreline change rates for most of the Texas coast under the Texas Shoreline Change Project. All data, including what is presented in this report, are being placed in a web-based Geographic Information System (ArcIMS) on the Bureau's Texas Shoreline Change Project website. The public can use this website to create custom maps and download data.