The objective of this project is to provide information about the rate of beach erosion along the Texas Gulf Coast while actively involving high school students in an actual scientific project. The information generated will allow communities to anticipate and respond to future shoreline change. In addition, the participating students receive enhanced scientific instruction and gain hands-on insight into scientific methods. Students at Ball High School in Galveston are participating in the pilot phase of this project. Over the period of one year, the students will make four field trips to selected localities near Galveston. They will measure shore-normal beach and dune topographic profiles, while making observations on weather conditions, sea state, rate of longshore drift, and dune vegetation. The data will be analyzed by the students and by scientists at the Bureau of Economic Geology/University of Texas at Austin. The profiles measured by the students will be compared to profiles measured since 1991 by the Bureau of Economic Geology. The result of this pilot study will be a one year time-series of seasonal beach and dune morphologic change at critical localities near Galveston. The project will also develop classroom materials, equipment and field techniques necessary for implementation of a Texas Gulf Coast-wide high school beach monitoring program. This project is supported by grants from Exxon, Conoco, and the Texas General Land Office.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90937©1998 AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition, Salt Lake City, Utah