The Texas Coastal Plain is ideal for studying physical processes and the late Quaternary sedimentological record.

For the past decade, geologists at the Bureau of Economic Geology, The University of Texas at Austin, have prepared various maps of the Texas Coastal Zone.

The Texas Coastal Zone is marked by diversity in geography, resources, climate, and industry.

The State-owned submerged lands of Texas encompass nearly 6,000 square miles (15,540 km²) and extend from Mexico to Louisiana. The area includes the bays, estuaries, and lagoons, as well as the inner continental shelf 10.3 miles (16.6 km) seaward of the Gulf shoreline (fig. 1).

Bastrop, Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Fayette, Hays, Lee, Llano, Travis, and Williamson Counties make up the Capital Area Planning Council (CAPCO) region in Central Texas (fig. 1). The region covers 8,427 square miles (21,826 km2) and includes land of great physical diversity.