Hurricane Harvey exposed a weakness in coastal Texas where much of the nation’s refinery capacity and chemical production have been concentrated along the swamps and narrow inlets of the Gulf of Mexico, according to the New York Times.

The pounding being endured is likely to be the biggest test to the facilities, risking devastation from storm damage. For energy experts it raises questions about the area’s role as a hub for these critical and environmentally sensitive industries.

In the long term, the energy industry will have to consider the costs of hardening the infrastructure on the Gulf Coast to moving to a different location, such as the eastern Seaboard, according to Michael E. Webber of the Energy Institute at the University of Texas at Austin.

Learn more: New York Times > Harvey’s toll on energy industry shows a Texas vulnerability