Q. Where can I find the oyster reefs and other BUG projects, such as the various islands and marshes?
A. There are currently a total of 172 acres of created oyster reefs. Click here for coordinates of the reef and other features of the BUG project.

Q. What animals should we look out for at the new marsh?
A. Inter-tidal salt marshes are an ideal nursery area for marine fish and shellfish as well as an important habitat for birds and other wildlife. Observers of the new marshes have seen small finfish, shrimp, crabs, various mollusks, small mammals such as marsh rice rats, raccoons, dogs and cats, and over 100 bird species.

Q. How long does it take to construct a marsh?
A. The marsh is constructed in different stages. First, the levee is placed. Once this is done, shoreline protection is placed around the levees to help protect them from erosion. When all the levee material has settled, the marsh itself is then filled with material. This too must settle before the area is vegetated. When the vegetation is established, parts of the levees will be breached allowing for full tidal interaction between marsh and bay. The entire process takes approximately two to three years.

Q. How much material has been dredged?
A. The dredge machines move an average of 1,300 cubic yards of silt and clay per day. Since this expansion project began in December 1998, dredging crews have removed more than 16 million cubic yards from the Houston-Galveston Navigation Channel.

Q. What is the Beneficial Uses Group?
A. The Beneficial Uses Group (BUG) is an interagency team created in 1990 to determine environmentally responsible and economically sound ways to use materials dredged during the expansion of the Houston-Galveston Navigation Channel.

Q. How did the BUG form?
A. The Beneficial Uses Group is a subcommittee of the Interagency Coordination Team (ICT). The ICT is a problem-solving group responsible for the planning, engineering and post-project monitoring of the dredged materials from the Ship Channel and bay.

Q. What projects are the BUG overseeing?
A. The Beneficial Uses Group has a number of environmentally beneficial projects underway, including: construction of 4,250 acres of inter-tidal salt marsh; construction of a six-acre bird nesting and habitat island; construction of an underwater berm to enhance habitation for fish species; restoration of two previously existing islands: Goat Island in Buffalo Bayou and Redfish Island in Galveston Bay; and construction of new access channels and anchorages for recreational boaters in mid-and lower Galveston Bay.

Q. Why marshes?
A. Because they help the ecological system of the bay. Marshes help wildlife by providing food, protection from predators, and spawning and nursery habitats for many fish and wildlife species. Marshes improve water quality by filtering out pollutants in the water, helping to produce high-quality fish populations. Marshes prevent erosion by absorbing wave energy in areas prone to loosing land to the ocean. Marshes form buffer zones during storms and protect lands from flooding by intercepting storm runoff and gradually releasing floodwaters to downstream systems. Marshes provide many recreational activities, such as opportunities for bird and wildlife observation, hiking, hunting and fishing. Despite these benefits, either natural threats or human impact destroys wetlands throughout the United States. Marsh restoration is essential to maintaining the delicate ecological balance along the coastlines in the United States and around the world. Organizations such as the Beneficial Uses Group are working to combat the destruction of wetlands and restore those that have been lost.