Grieving for Galveston

I’m grieving today for poor old Galveston Island, beset by yet another major oil spill. This time a barge carrying almost one million gallons of marine fuel oil collided with another ship. Approximately 168,000 gallons of this thick oil leaked into the Houston ship channel near Texas City. The ship channel passes between the east tip of Galveston Island and Bolivar into Galveston Bay and on to Houston.

Galveston Island once was a major port and point of arrival to emigrants from Europe, but after two major hurricanes had devastated the island and port at the beginning of the 20^th Century, the ship channel was dug to Houston, which then took Galveston’s place as a point of arrival for goods and people. Now the port of Galveston is primarily used for enormous cruise ships to board and disembark passengers.

Beyond its port Galveston Island was a salt-grass covered island, home to rattlesnakes and myriads of birds. Much of the island was devoted to cattle ranching, the cattle feeding on salt grass, accompanied by cattle egrets. A few primitive fishing shacks went up along the bay and on the gulf side. But even as Houston replaced Galveston as a major southern port, the cattle ranches were slowly, inexorably replaced by vacation homes on stilts,

Gradually these vacation homes have grown to mansions and high-rise condominiums have risen on the west end of the island. Canals dug into the island made it possible to build hundreds of vacation homes with access to the bay, as well. Today only tiny remnants of the cattle ranches remain.

Galveston’s greatest attraction was its beautiful beaches that stretch from the city of Galveston to the island’s tip. Millions of seashells, water birds, crabs, and other life forms gave the beach vitality and contributed to its beauty.

First hurricane Katrina, then the Deepwater Horizon oil well spill devastated the marine life of Galveston. Beaches once covered with seashells now are almost bare. The crabs have vanished. Only some of the birds remain. Now this marine oil spill will take its toll. It is another nail in the coffin of Galveston Island, a place I have loved.

I’ve know for a long time that we humans would spoil everything we touch, but I never expected to live long enough to see it happening. Now we read of oil spills and toxic waste contamination of waterways nearly every day. Will we never learn?

Copyright 2014 by Shirley Domer