The Bayport Container Terminal, or simply the Bayport Terminal, is a major deep water port in the

Greater Houston Greater Houston, designated by the Office of Management and Budget, United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–Pasadena–The Woodlands, is the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical ...

area in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

(

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

). This relatively new terminal, part of the

Port of Houston The Port of Houston is one of the world's largest ports and serves the metropolitan area of Houston, Houston, Texas. The port is a complex of diversified public and private facilities located a few hours' sailing time from the Gulf of Mexico. Loc ...

, is designed to handle standardized

cargo containers Containerization is a system of intermodal freight transport using intermodal containers (also called shipping containers, or ISO containers). Containerization, also referred as container stuffing or container loading, is the process of uni ...

and offload the nearby Barbours Cut Terminal, which has no further room for expansion. The Bayport Terminal is situated along the Bayport Ship Channel off

Galveston Bay Galveston Bay ( ) is a bay in the western Gulf of Mexico along the upper coast of Texas. It is the seventh-largest estuary in the United States, and the largest of seven major estuaries along the Texas Gulf Coast. It is connected to the Gulf of ...

, between

La Porte, Texas La Porte ( ) is a city in Harris County, Texas, United States, within the Bay Area of the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 35,124. La Porte is the fourth-largest incorporated ...

and

Seabrook, Texas Seabrook is a city in Harris County, Texas, Harris County, Texas, United States, with some water surface area located within Chambers County, Texas, Chambers County. The population was 13,618 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census. S ...

adjacent to Shoreacres. This channel itself feeds into the larger

Houston Ship Channel The Houston Ship Channel, in Houston, Texas, is part of the Port of Houston, one of the busiest seaports in the world. The channel (geography), channel is the conduit for ocean-going vessels between Houston-area terminals and the Gulf of Mexico, ...

, which runs from

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, through

, to the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

. The port sits adjacent to the Bayport Industrial District, a large complex of firms primarily involved in

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil or simply oil, is a naturally occurring, yellowish-black liquid chemical mixture found in geological formations, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. The term ''petroleum'' refers both to naturally occurring un ...

and

petrochemical Petrochemicals (sometimes abbreviated as petchems) are the chemical products obtained from petroleum by refining. Some chemical compounds made from petroleum are also obtained from other fossil fuels, such as coal or natural gas, or renewable s ...

processing. The facilities at Bayport formerly included a

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

terminal, built at a cost of US$81 million. The terminal briefly saw use for cruises following

Hurricane Ike Hurricane Ike () was a powerful tropical cyclone that swept through portions of the Greater Antilles and Northern America in September 2008, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agriculture, particularly in Cuba and Texas. Ike took a sim ...

when ships like

Carnival Cruise Lines Carnival Cruise Line is an international cruise line with headquarters in Doral, Florida. The company is a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Its logo is a funnel shaped like a whale's tail, with a red, white, and blue color scheme. This ...

Ecstasy Ecstasy most often refers to: * Ecstasy (emotion), a trance or trance-like state in which a person transcends normal consciousness * Religious ecstasy, a state of consciousness, visions or absolute euphoria * Ecstasy (philosophy), to be or stand o ...

'' and ''

Conquest Conquest involves the annexation or control of another entity's territory through war or Coercion (international relations), coercion. Historically, conquests occurred frequently in the international system, and there were limited normative or ...

'' were re-routed from the damaged

Port of Galveston The Port of Galveston is the port of the city of Galveston, Texas, United States. It was established by a proclamation issued by the Congress of Mexico on October 17, 1825, while the land known today as Texas was still part of Mexico. The Port o ...

to Bayport for nearly two months. Bayport Cruise Terminal was a planned port of call for both

Princess Cruises Princess Cruises is an American cruise line owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. The company headquarters are in Santa Clarita, California and is incorporated in Bermuda. As of 2025, it is the List of cruise lines#List of cruise lines by size, s ...

and

Norwegian Cruise Line Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) is an American cruise line founded in Norway in 1966, headquartered in Miami, Florida, and incorporated in the Bahamas. It is the List of cruise lines, fourth-largest cruise line in the world by passengers, controlling ...

in 2013-2014. The cruise ships have since abandoned the terminal and the Port of Houston has dismantled the gangways.

Controversy

The Bayport Terminal was controversial since before its construction due to concerns raised about environmental impact and the general suitability of the site. The

United States Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wo ...

approved the permit, but stated in the Environmental Impact Statement that unavoidable impacts of increased noise in the area, increased levels of

nitrous oxide Nitrous oxide (dinitrogen oxide or dinitrogen monoxide), commonly known as laughing gas, nitrous, or factitious air, among others, is a chemical compound, an Nitrogen oxide, oxide of nitrogen with the Chemical formula, formula . At room te ...

s, sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide, and cancer causing particulate matter would be emitted by the terminal. Homes are within of the docks. Due to the prevailing southeast wind and the proximity of the residents, the Corps of Engineers recommended a sound wall to block sound levels that they estimated to be as high as 70 dBA (as of 2010 the terminal was only approximately 30% in operation yet produced levels of 65 dBA). The Port of Houston approached residents who are affected by the pollution and noise and has attempted to buy an easement from these residents. In 2010, the mayor of Shoreacres published a letter to the community raising concerns about the scope of the easement and rights residents might be waiving by accepting it. That same year residents of Shoreacres filed suit against the Port of Houston Authority for damages.

Notes

External links

Port of Houston: Bayport Terminal
{{Texas Galveston Bay Area Greater Houston Ports and harbors of Texas La Porte, Texas Gulf of Mexico Transportation buildings and structures in Houston Container terminals

Controversy

See also

Notes

External links