Rollover Pass Project and Plan
Rollover Pass Project
An exhaustive environmental study of Rollover Pass shows there would be no significant environmental impact from closing the popular fish pass. Florida-based Taylor Engineering Inc. conducted the study, which proves the man-made pass is directly responsible for high rates of erosion on Bolivar Peninsula. The study was done as part of the Texas General Land Office’s permit application with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to close Rollover Pass.
The study also provides new data on future salinity levels in East Bay, and explains how the pass can be closed without affecting highway traffic or disrupting nearby property owners.
Many studies have been conducted on Rollover Pass since 1958, and all of them found that it causes erosion problems. One study, done in 1989, showed that Rollover Pass dumps more than 290,000 cubic yards of sand into the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway each year.
Ray Newby