GALVESTON, January 26, 2000 - A new island has emerged from the depths of Galveston Bay, and it's strictly for the birds. Even better, those birds - pelicans, terns, egrets and others - won't have to wait the eons it generally takes Mother Nature to finish creating a new landmass. Thanks to scientists and engineers with the Port of Houston Authority, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and other members of the Beneficial Uses Group (BUG), birds will be able to successfully nest on six-acre "Bird Island" as soon as this spring.

Not your typical real estate development project by any means, Bird Island is only one component of the largest project of its kind in the country. It is part of a 4,250-acre marshland development project devised by the BUG to enhance the livability in and around Galveston Bay.

"Once completed, Bird Island will be a hard-to-miss feature of Galveston Bay, particularly for the area's feathered inhabitants who've already discovered it," says Phil Glass, BUG member and fish and wildlife biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "But it's not just the birds who will benefit. By restoring lost habitat, this island will make Galveston Bay better for everyone."

In addition to Bird Island, the BUG plans to create 4,250 acres of wetlands, restore Goat Island and Redfish Island, construct an underwater berm to enhance habitation for fish species, and create an access channel and anchorages for recreational boaters. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Port of Houston Authority are overseeing construction of the BUG projects.

BUG members are particularly interested in projects that benefit birds because there has been a noticeable decline in Galveston Bay's waterbird population.

"Every nesting season, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Houston Audubon Society and other groups conduct the Texas Colonial Waterbird Survey to determine the bird population around the Bay," explains Glass. "In recent years, we've noticed a decrease in the number of waterfowl coming to the area, which we attribute to factors such as boating and land erosion. The dredging of the Ship Channel presented a great opportunity for us to increase the number of birds nesting in the Bay."

Plans for Bird Island were finalized in 1995. After one and a half months of construction, all six acres of material have been placed - and already birds come there to take advantage of the soil's rich nutrients.

Completion of Bird Island is scheduled for November 2000, at which time it will have a peak elevation of 12 feet above the water surface. The BUG will oversee the planting of various types of vegetation considered ideal for waterfowl nesting. Some bird species nest in trees, while others nest on the beaches. So, both environments - and others - will be created on Bird Island, allowing a variety of birds to make the island their home.

"Of course, we welcomed this opportunity and are very pleased with the way the island is coming along," says Glass, "but the real benefactors are the birds who are already enjoying their new habitat."

The Beneficial Uses Group, a coalition of government agencies - five federal, two state and one local - was formed to identify environmentally responsible ways to utilize material dredged during the expansion of the Houston Ship Channel. Uses and sites for the dredged materials were determined after an analysis was conducted revealing there was no potential for release of contaminants from the dredging and new placement of material.

The BUG is a subcommittee of the Interagency Coordination Team (ICT), a group formed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the deepening and widening of the Houston-Galveston Navigation Channels. The ICT is a problem-solving team charged with overseeing the planning, engineering and post-project monitoring of environmental issues concerning the expansion of the channel.

The BUG's member agencies include the Port of Houston Authority, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, and the Texas General Land Office.

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