Volunteers wade into water to restore Galveston Bay

Galveston, TX — Aramco volunteers waded into the waters of Galveston Bay, the seventh largest estuary in the U.S., in late June to support hands-on restoration of the wetlands through the Galveston Bay Foundation’s annual “Marsh Mania” event. 

Aramco served as the lead sponsor, marking the event’s 23rd anniversary in Texas, and provided the people power to help get the job done.

Approximately 40 employee volunteers, summer students and family members, worked throughout the day to plant marsh grass, vital to maintaining the bay’s ecosystem. 

The goal this year is to plant between 30,000 to 40,000 stalks of grass. Like trees, marsh grass is another natural tool found to help mitigate carbon emissions and has other environmental benefits such as helping to guard against beach erosion due to storms. 

“We have supported the Galveston Bay Foundation for more than a decade and are pleased to join with them and others to make this event possible,” said Nabeel I. AlAfaleg, president and CEO, Aramco Americas. 

Anna Armitage, a marine biology professor and researcher at Texas A&M University at Galveston was on-site to provide an orientation. 

Armitage estimates 15,000 stems of plants can capture up to 10 tons of carbon dioxide every year. The compounding effects over the next 10, 20, and 30 years will be significant. This year’s event focused on transplanting smooth cordgrass — a tall, hardy grass that grows in salt marshes in Texas. 

Through the years, the Marsh Mania initiative has restored more than 214 acres of marsh habitat at 99 locations around Galveston Bay. 

Caption of top photo: Aramco Americas volunteers plant marsh grasses in Galveston Bay along the Texas Gulf Coast in support of biodiversity conservation and protection.