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Focus AreasIOBCWA is made up of citizens with varying fields of expertise and interests as they relate to the health, safety, and quality of life in Ingleside on the Bay. We strive for Community Resilience, with committee work focused on four broad areas: Land, Air, Water, and Quality of Life.
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LandWe are concerned about the stability and sustainability of the land upon which we live. Of about 400 lots in the city, nearly half are located directly on the water or in the FEMA flood plain. Many of our homes experience "nuisance" flooding, drainage issues, and coastal erosion. Most homes sustained damage during Hurricane Harvey. IOBCWA is working with architects and urban planners to identify resiliency strategies for protecting our shoreline. Such strategies may include, but are not limited to, raising roads, coastline hardening, beach nourishment, living shorelines, raising elevations, and upgrading drainage.
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AirWe are concerned about the quality of the air we breathe due to increasing industrialization surrounding us. IOBCWA is working with our industrial neighbors to conduct air monitoring designed to keep our air safe and clear. Among our citizens are innovative technologists who are exploring reliable but inexpensive ways to ensure the health and safety throughout our community. Such strategies may include, but are not limited to, arming citizen scientists with sensors to create a neighborhood mesh network and developing an alert system.
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WaterWe are concerned about the quality of the water we drink and the vitality of the recreational waters we enjoy. As the Corpus Christi region becomes a major destination for oil from the Permian Basin, our community is experiencing significant increases in size, frequency, and volume of ship traffic with plans to deepen ship channels and build desalination plants to support industry demands. IOBCWA is monitoring these activities in order to mitigate negative impacts on our waters. Such efforts may include mapping and modeling, capturing relevant data, and developing an interactive online dashboard for sharing real-time information, among others.
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Community ResilienceWe are partnering with universities steeped in the latest research and technologies for creating resilient coastal communities capable of addressing daunting challenges. IOBCWA hopes to help position IOB as a model for other communities facing similar challenges.
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Quality of LifeIOBCWA consists of neighbors who share a common goal - to preserve the quality of life we enjoy in our unique and beautiful waterfront community. We urge all our neighbors to join us!
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REACHing for Community Resilience
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Our approach to achieving coastal community resilience for IOB can be encapsulated in the acronym REACH:
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We partner with research institutions to understand the challenges we face and the best approaches to address them.
We educate our community about the threats and strategies being explored. We take action to identify partners, funding, technologies, and materials needed to implement the best strategies. We communicate with others about our experiences in order to serve as a model for other coastal communities. We strive for health and happiness of our residents who have chosen this unique bayfront lifestyle. |