Analyzing multi-temporal wetland habitat coverage and modeling present and future bathymetry conditions in Texas estuaries

Within estuaries along the Texas coast, wetland coverage and bathymetry were computed. Ultimately eight major river estuaries were analyzed: Sabine Lake, Galveston, Matagorda, San Antonio, Aransas, Corpus Christi, Upper Laguna Madre, and Lower Laguna Madre. For these eight estuaries, the area of various wetland habitats (saltwater marsh, mangrove, freshwater marsh, swamp, oyster, seagrass, and tidal flat) was determined using National Wetland Inventory (NWI) data. Additionally, water volume for both present-day conditions and projected 2100 scenarios under the intermediate-low Global Mean Sea Level Rise (GMSLR) was calculated, with the assumption of 0.5 meters by 2100. Further analysis targeted three estuaries (Sabine-Neches, Lavaca-Colorado, and Nueces) distributed across the upper, middle, and lower Texas coast. Utilizing historical wetland data from the Bureau of Economic Geology (BEG) spanning three time periods (1950s, 1970s – 1980s, and 2000s), the spatial and temporal changes in wetland habitat coverage were assessed.