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 situation with a recent investigation by the Houston Chronicle and The Texas Newsroom that raised questions on a flood tunnel challenge he’s pitching to handle Houston’s persistent flooding woes. However specialists mentioned 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 below Houston for flood mitigation. Boring has proposed digging two 12-foot-wide tunnels beneath Buffalo Bayou — the principle waterway working by way of 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 much 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 have the ability to deal with the dimensions of floodwater Houston is prone to encounter sooner or later.
As a substitute, Musk waited till hours after the story revealed to put up a response on X, the social media firm he’s owned since 2022.
“Boring Firm tunnels will work and value <10% of options,” his Aug. 28 put up learn. “If extra circulate is required, further tunnels could be constructed and moreover they are often route water from many components of the town, not only one.”
The put up was written in response to a put up on X from U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt, a Houston Republican who helped prepare personal 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 revealed.
“A lifelong Houstonian and Texas Congressman spoke to the neatest man on planet earth about fixing a generational flooding situation in our metropolis that nobody else will repair,” Hunt wrote.
Musk’s put up supplied no information or engineering clarification to again up his assertions. So the newsrooms examined his statements, evaluating them towards flood research, and interviewed engineering specialists, a few of whom identified key technical and logistical challenges with the Boring plan.
Considered one of Musk’s claims is probably going false, and the others should not but attainable to confirm with certainty, in keeping with the newsrooms’ examination.
Once more, when the newsrooms pressed Musk and Boring representatives to clarify 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 tens of millions of {dollars} learning. However that’s partly as a result of the 2 are strikingly totally different proposals.
Hunt’s staff has mentioned Boring’s Buffalo Bayou challenge would value $760 million, in keeping with inside communications obtained by the newsrooms by way of public information requests.
The county’s flood management district, alternatively, 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 challenge remains to be within the analysis section, the county numbers are preliminary. However based mostly on the figures obtainable, Boring’s proposal would value nearer to one-sixth of the county’s estimate — not lower than 10%, as Musk’s put up urged. So Musk appears to be exaggerating how less expensive his system can be.
Flood management specialists additionally maintained that the diminished value is considerably proportional to the diminished 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’d divert much less water from susceptible areas than one massive tunnel.
Jim Blackburn, a Houston environmental lawyer and flood coverage knowledgeable, mentioned whereas Musk’s firm deserves a good listening to, cheaper doesn’t robotically imply higher.
“If it’s a smaller tunnel, then I’d count on it to value much less,” Blackburn mentioned. “You’ve obtained to take 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, mentioned the company wants extra data earlier than it may well weigh in on any of Musk’s claims.
“We’d need to do a number of examine earlier than something might even probably transfer ahead, so I wouldn’t need to speculate,” she mentioned. “Till we’ve a challenge or one other examine, we’d level individuals to our web site for the studies and information we’ve compiled up to now.”
Can further tunnels be constructed for extra water circulate?
Musk’s put up mentioned if extra floodwater must be moved, extra tunnels could be added. Engineers mentioned it isn’t that straightforward.
Larry Dunbar, a veteran water sources engineer who has suggested Houston-area governmental businesses on drainage points, mentioned based mostly on dimension alone, it could take about 11 of Boring’s tunnels to hold the identical quantity of water as one massive tunnel. Lined up facet by facet, with sufficient room between them to maintain the bottom steady, the total system might span a whole lot of ft. That might require securing rights to extra land and constructing extra entry factors for upkeep, he mentioned.
And every new section of building may deliver one other spherical of evaluations and mobilization prices, Dunbar mentioned, undercutting the pace and affordability that Boring has touted as key benefits of its proposal.
“The problems begin to simply get an increasing number of difficult,” Dunbar mentioned. “Not that it may well’t be executed, however simply to form of throw on the market — ‘Oh, if we want extra, we’ll simply do extra’ — effectively, 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 mentioned.
He added that the county would want to determine on the total plan on the outset so all system components like pumps, drains and outfalls could be designed correctly.
“It could not be easy to only add further tunnels later,” Ramsey mentioned.
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 mentioned, he has come throughout numerous contractors able to constructing tunnels massive sufficient to deal with the job correctly the primary time.
“You don’t begin small and determine it out later,” he mentioned. “This entire idea of placing in 20% of what you want to see if it’s sufficient makes zero sense.”
Credit score:
Raquel Natalicchio/Houston Chronicle
Can Boring’s tunnels transfer water from different components of the town, and can the tunnels work?
Musk argued that Boring’s tunnels may very well be utilized in totally different components of the 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 mentioned he helps exploring smaller tunnels for areas like Looking and Halls bayous, which run by way of different components of the town and in addition want sources to strengthen their flood safety. The county commissioner publicly known 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 software in our toolbox to assist mitigate flooding. And definitely with what’s occurring within the Hill Nation,” Ramsey mentioned, referring to latest deadly floods in Central Texas, “and what continues to occur in Harris County, we want as many instruments as we will probably get.”
Woodell, with the flood management district, advised the newsrooms in August that the company initially centered on large-diameter tunnels as a result of engineering research recognized them as the simplest choice for a countywide system.
Nonetheless, she mentioned smaller tunnels may very well 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 challenge 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 — mentioned communities in her watershed are determined for aid as effectively. They might welcome the huge storm tunnel as soon as proposed by Harris County, she mentioned, however even smaller tunnels can be higher than nothing.
“We might be thrilled to have any and all potentialities checked out,” Gilbert mentioned. “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 situation with Musk’s sweeping assertion that “Boring Firm tunnels will work” as a result of it doesn’t have in mind complexities of the challenge or that success largely depends upon what sort of system the county finally needs.
In a two-page memo Boring despatched to Hunt’s staff in February and that was circulated amongst native officers within the county, the corporate framed the pitch as an “modern, cost-effective answer” to Houston’s persistent flooding.
“We’re assured in our capability to execute this challenge efficiently,” wrote Jim Fitzgerald, Boring’s world head of enterprise improvement.
However Dunbar mentioned the one approach to consider Musk’s declare is to give attention to the aim of the stormwater tunnels.
If the aim is to construct as massive a challenge as attainable for the bottom value, Dunbar mentioned, Boring’s proposal may match the invoice. But when the aim is to defend lives and property from one other Hurricane Harvey-level flooding occasion, he believes the smaller-scale challenge merely doesn’t measure up.
“You need to have some underlying cause why you construct this tunnel, what you’re attempting to perform,” Dunbar mentioned. “And I’ve not heard that Elon has provided that reply.”
Rock Owens, retired Harris County lawyer for environmental affairs who represented businesses together with the flood management district, mentioned he has seen native officers repeatedly greenlighting large initiatives that weren’t effectively 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 improvement with out sufficient flood management, which they mentioned triggered repeated flooding of their properties.
The Texas Supreme Courtroom finally dominated in favor of the county in 2016. However Owens mentioned even unsuccessful lawsuits are pricey and the form of problem that might have uncovered the county to a considerable damages award.
Musk’s ethos of moving fast and worrying about penalties later, Owens mentioned, solely heightens the chance.
“That works positive within the personal sector, however not the general public sector,” he mentioned. “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.
