The Texas Division of Emergency Management and Federal Emergency Management Agency funded the cleanup following the July 4 weekend floods, which damaged many Central Texas cities, including Leander, Georgetown and Liberty Hill.
What’s being done
Grapple trucks filled with materials like tree branches, vegetation, soil and rocks have been transporting the debris to a cleanup site in Williamson County daily. In a presentation to county commissioners Oct. 14, Clements detailed the flood debris cleanup efforts.
On a sample weekday, crews hauled 121 truckloads of debris, amounting to 6,223 cubic yards. On a sample weekend, crews hauled 74 truckloads, or 3,118 cubic yards of debris.
At the debris management site, haul out totals amount to 2,568 loads or 129,258 cubic yards of debris, as of Oct. 12. Austin Wood Recycling in Hutto is turning the natural material into mulch, amounting to an area of mulch the size of a football field and over 60 feet deep, Clements said.
“There’s a variety of specialized pieces of equipment that are used—not only specialized equipment to pull it from the river and from the banks, but also managing it and chipping it up,” Clements said at the meeting. “So [it’s] a very impressive operation we have going.”
The update
Crews have completed debris removal of about 10% of the waterway, Clements said.
“Although it sounds like a really low number, they've targeted the areas that are the worst, like where there's bends in the river and there's major piles of debris,” Clements said.
Debris removal must be completed within six months of the disaster, in accordance with FEMA rules, and the county has targeted a completion date for before Christmas, Clements said.
Some cities, like Georgetown, activated individual debris contracts to start working on the cleanup before state contractors arrived.
The impact
Flood debris is a hazard to public safety, the environment and infrastructure, Clements said. The removal and cleanup of the debris prevents:
- Increased risk of wildfire
- Housing rodent and pest populations
- Blocking waterways and roads
- Impacting water quality
- Damaging to animal habitats
- Damaging to roads and utilities
- River bank erosion and destabilization
The county’s application process for residents in need of debris removal from their property due to the flooding event will close Oct. 31. This application begins the review process to determine a resident’s eligibility and debris removal needs.
Applicants can access the form online or reach out to the county hotline at 512-991-1045.
