This text is co-published with the Houston Chronicle and The Texas Newsroom as a part of an initiative to report on how energy is wielded in Texas.
Billionaire Elon Musk is taking concern with a latest investigation by the Houston Chronicle and The Texas Newsroom that raised questions on a flood tunnel mission he’s pitching to deal with Houston’s power flooding woes. However consultants stated his response, which he didn’t clarify to the newsrooms, isn’t supported by info or information.
Final month, the newsrooms reported that Musk’s tunneling firm, The Boring Co., has been lobbying elected officers for months to permit it to construct tunnels beneath Houston for flood mitigation. Boring has proposed digging two 12-foot-wide tunnels beneath Buffalo Bayou — the principle waterway operating via central Houston — to hold stormwater out of neighborhoods and towards the Gulf of Mexico throughout main storms. Specialists say, nevertheless, that bigger tunnels, nearer to 30 to 40 ft in diameter, might carry way more water and be simpler.
Musk and representatives with Boring didn’t reply to interview requests or reply questions the newsrooms despatched upfront of final month’s story about whether or not Boring’s smaller tunnels would be capable to deal with the size of floodwater Houston is prone to encounter sooner or later.
As an alternative, Musk waited till hours after the story printed to publish a response on X, the social media firm he’s owned since 2022.
“Boring Firm tunnels will work and price <10% of options,” his Aug. 28 publish learn. “If extra circulate is required, extra tunnels might be constructed and moreover they are often route water from many elements of town, not only one.”
The publish was written in response to a publish on X from U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt, a Houston Republican who helped organize non-public conferences with authorities officers in Harris County and throughout the state to promote them on Boring’s flood tunnel plan. Hunt additionally didn’t reply to questions from the newsrooms forward of publication of the unique story, however he weighed in on X after the story was printed.
“A lifelong Houstonian and Texas Congressman spoke to the neatest man on planet earth about fixing a generational flooding concern in our metropolis that nobody else will repair,” Hunt wrote.
Musk’s publish supplied no information or engineering clarification to again up his assertions. So the newsrooms examined his statements, evaluating them in opposition to flood research, and interviewed engineering consultants, a few of whom identified key technical and logistical challenges with the Boring plan.
One among Musk’s claims is probably going false, and the others aren’t but attainable to confirm with certainty, based on the newsrooms’ examination.
Once more, when the newsrooms pressed Musk and Boring representatives to elucidate the tech billionaire’s claims, they didn’t reply. Nor did Hunt.
Credit score:
Kirk Sides/Houston Chronicle
Would Boring’s tunnels value lower than 10% of options?
Musk’s proposal carries a lower cost tag than the estimated value of the bigger system the flood management district has spent years and thousands and thousands of {dollars} finding out. However that’s partly as a result of the 2 are strikingly completely different proposals.
Hunt’s workforce has stated Boring’s Buffalo Bayou mission would value $760 million, based on inside communications obtained by the newsrooms via public data requests.
The county’s flood management district, then again, proposed in 2022 tunnels of 30 to 40 ft in diameter for that phase of the system at a value of about $4.6 billion.
For the reason that mission remains to be within the analysis part, the county numbers are preliminary. However primarily based on the figures accessible, Boring’s proposal would value nearer to one-sixth of the county’s estimate — not lower than 10%, as Musk’s publish prompt. So Musk appears to be exaggerating how less expensive his system can be.
Flood management consultants additionally maintained that the lowered value is considerably proportional to the lowered capability of Boring’s narrower tunnels. Two 12-foot tunnels would offer lower than one-fifth of the quantity {that a} single 40-foot tunnel provides.
Meaning they might divert much less water from susceptible areas than one giant tunnel.
Jim Blackburn, a Houston environmental lawyer and flood coverage skilled, stated whereas Musk’s firm deserves a good listening to, cheaper doesn’t robotically imply higher.
“If it’s a smaller tunnel, then I might anticipate it to value much less,” Blackburn stated. “You’ve received to have a look at how a lot flood mitigation you get for the {dollars} you spend.”
Emily Woodell, a spokesperson for the Harris County Flood Management District, stated the company wants extra data earlier than it may weigh in on any of Musk’s claims.
“We’d should do quite a lot of examine earlier than something might even probably transfer ahead, so I wouldn’t need to speculate,” she stated. “Till now we have a mission or one other examine, we’d level individuals to our web site for the experiences and information we’ve compiled up to now.”
Can extra tunnels be constructed for extra water circulate?
Musk’s publish stated if extra floodwater must be moved, extra tunnels might be added. Engineers stated it’s not that straightforward.
Larry Dunbar, a veteran water sources engineer who has suggested Houston-area governmental businesses on drainage points, stated primarily based on dimension alone, it will take about 11 of Boring’s tunnels to hold the identical quantity of water as one giant tunnel. Lined up facet by facet, with sufficient room between them to maintain the bottom secure, the complete system might span lots of of ft. That might require securing rights to extra land and constructing extra entry factors for upkeep, he stated.
And every new part of building may carry one other spherical of evaluations and mobilization prices, Dunbar stated, undercutting the velocity and affordability that Boring has touted as key benefits of its proposal.
“The problems begin to simply get increasingly more difficult,” Dunbar stated. “Not that it may’t be carried out, however simply to type of throw on the market — ‘Oh, if we’d like extra, we’ll simply do extra’ — nicely, there’s much more to it than that.”
Harris County Commissioner Tom Ramsey, who has an engineering background, agreed. Extra tunnels would additionally imply extra tools to take care of, which might drive up long-term prices, Ramsey stated.
He added that the county would wish to resolve on the complete plan on the outset so all system parts like pumps, drains and outfalls might be designed correctly.
“It will not be easy to only add extra tunnels later,” Ramsey stated.
John Blount, a former Harris County engineer who retired after greater than three many years with the county, equally dismissed Musk’s suggestion that Boring might simply construct extra tunnels if the preliminary plan falls brief.
Whereas engaged on different infrastructure initiatives, Blount stated, he has come throughout a lot of contractors able to constructing tunnels giant sufficient to deal with the job correctly the primary time.
“You don’t begin small and determine it out later,” he stated. “This entire idea of placing in 20% of what you might want to see if it’s sufficient makes zero sense.”
Credit score:
Raquel Natalicchio/Houston Chronicle
Can Boring’s tunnels transfer water from different elements of town, and can the tunnels work?
Musk argued that Boring’s tunnels could possibly be utilized in completely different elements of town, not simply alongside Buffalo Bayou.
Some native officers agreed that Musk’s tunnels may truly work higher for smaller watersheds that don’t tackle as a lot water as Buffalo Bayou.
Ramsey stated he helps exploring smaller tunnels for areas like Looking and Halls bayous, which run via different elements of town and in addition want sources to strengthen their flood safety. The county commissioner publicly referred to as for a more in-depth have a look at narrower tunnels throughout a commissioners courtroom assembly in April, after Hunt had pitched him on Boring’s proposal in February.
“It’s one other instrument in our toolbox to assist mitigate flooding. And definitely with what’s occurring within the Hill Nation,” Ramsey stated, referring to latest lethal floods in Central Texas, “and what continues to occur in Harris County, we’d like as many instruments as we are able to presumably get.”
Woodell, with the flood management district, informed the newsrooms in August that the company initially centered on large-diameter tunnels as a result of engineering research recognized them as the best possibility for a countywide system.
Nevertheless, she stated smaller tunnels could possibly be a viable answer in sure areas. Since that concept had not been a spotlight of analysis, she added, extra examine can be wanted earlier than any such mission might transfer ahead.
Colleen Gilbert, government director of the Greens Bayou Coalition — a nonprofit that works to guard neighborhoods close to Greens Bayou, in northeast Houston — stated communities in her watershed are determined for aid as nicely. They’d welcome the huge storm tunnel as soon as proposed by Harris County, she stated, however even smaller tunnels can be higher than nothing.
“We might be thrilled to have any and all potentialities checked out,” Gilbert stated. “If Congressman Hunt and The Boring Co. are this, we’re delighted to listen to it.”
Specialists and officers the newsrooms interviewed, nevertheless, nonetheless took concern with Musk’s sweeping assertion that “Boring Firm tunnels will work” as a result of it doesn’t keep in mind complexities of the mission or that success largely will depend on what sort of system the county finally desires.
In a two-page memo Boring despatched to Hunt’s workforce in February and that was circulated amongst native officers within the county, the corporate framed the pitch as an “revolutionary, cost-effective answer” to Houston’s power flooding.
“We’re assured in our means to execute this mission efficiently,” wrote Jim Fitzgerald, Boring’s international head of enterprise growth.
However Dunbar stated the one technique to consider Musk’s declare is to concentrate on the aim of the stormwater tunnels.
If the purpose is to construct as giant a mission as attainable for the bottom value, Dunbar stated, Boring’s proposal may match the invoice. But when the purpose is to protect lives and property from one other Hurricane Harvey-level flooding occasion, he believes the smaller-scale mission merely doesn’t measure up.
“It’s a must to have some underlying purpose why you construct this tunnel, what you’re attempting to perform,” Dunbar stated. “And I’ve not heard that Elon has on condition that reply.”
Rock Owens, retired Harris County legal professional for environmental affairs who represented businesses together with the flood management district, stated he has seen native officers repeatedly greenlighting large initiatives that weren’t nicely thought out and led to pricey authorized battles.
He pointed, for example, to flood management points alongside White Oak Bayou in northwest Houston. In a prolonged authorized battle that started in 1999, about 400 owners within the space blamed the county for approving upstream growth with out satisfactory flood management, which they stated precipitated repeated flooding of their houses.
The Texas Supreme Court docket finally dominated in favor of the county in 2016. However Owens stated even unsuccessful lawsuits are pricey and the type of problem that would have uncovered the county to a considerable damages award.
Musk’s ethos of transferring quick and worrying about penalties later, Owens stated, solely heightens the chance.
“That works tremendous within the non-public sector, however not the general public sector,” he stated. “We’re not Mr. Musk’s private fortune; we’re wanting on the livelihood and lifelong investments of people that reside right here.”
Yilun Cheng is an investigative reporter with the Houston Chronicle. Attain her at [email protected].
Lauren McGaughy of The Texas Newsroom contributed reporting.
