Flooding rising in Houston area due to sinking lowering sea level

Added: 2026-05-18

[00:00:00]Okay, that right there is Katy each and every time it rains. When it rains, it floods and the reason is that Katy's sinking. Right now, Katy is 138 ft above sea level. The Harris uh the Harris-Galveston Subsidence District says that back in 2007, it was more than a foot higher, which is the number eight that you see here. Yeah, and that foot does make a difference. It would explain why people in Katy notice more flooding, cracks on their properties, and also crooked doors in their homes. KPRC 2's Nicole Nielsen presents a possible solution.

[00:00:31]It's so slow, you don't even notice it happening. But in some of Houston's fastest-growing suburbs, the ground is sinking. Once it happens, it's permanent. It's irreversible.

[00:00:42]>> It's called subsidence and it's happening most right now to the north and west of Houston. From Katy to Fulshear, Cypress, Spring, Tomball, and even The Woodlands. In Katy, one monitoring station has recorded about 14 in of sinking since 2007. It is alarming at first, however, your water providers are working very hard on a plan. The cause, groundwater pumping. As the area has grown, so has the need for water. For over a century, Houston relied heavily on wells, pulling water from underground aquifers. But when too much water is removed, the ground compacts and sinks. We've seen this before. In Baytown, a waterfront neighborhood sank 9 ft over four decades. Today, it's a nature center.

[00:01:26]But here's the reality of all of this.

[00:01:28]The sinking isn't uniform across the city where it's been documented the most. It's patchy and there are definitely some areas that have been more impacted than others. Like this home in Fulshear. When we moved in, the the ground level was even with the curb.

[00:01:41]Um and as you can see now, it is a good several inches below. But keep in mind, not every foundation problem comes down to subsidence alone. Many homes in the Houston area also deal with shifting soils and drainage issues, especially in areas like Katy that were built over rice fields. That's why the Harris-Galveston Subsidence District tracks it all. We collect a variety of data to be able to pinpoint, you know, where the subsidence is occurring. The organization says since 1975 stronger rules against pumping have helped slow subsidence near the coast, but north and west of Houston the push continues. Cut groundwater reliance from about 40% today to 20% by 2035. Because the bigger concern is what sinking does over time.

[00:02:24]Lower elevation, more flood risk. It's why awareness matters. So you know where your water comes from and you can support the projects bringing in more surface water near you and do your part to use less water over time. Everybody has a role to play and um they can make an impact themselves. Because once the land sinks, it doesn't come back.

[00:02:45]In Katy, Nicole Nielsen, KPRC 2 News.