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Harbor channel to get deeper
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More dredging money; work starts in Sept. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will be able to dig deeper into a dredging project at Crescent City Harbor than originally thought, and work will begin in September. Last week, Army Corps of Engineers representatives told local officials that they had received an additional $2.25 million dollars for dredging the harbor’s federal channel. According to a statement released by the corps, it will be able to dredge the critical section of the federal channel by 10 feet instead of 8. Some confusion materialized after the meeting about whether the new plan meant the channel would be dredged to a depth of 10 feet, or that 10 feet of sediment would be removed. In some spots, the channel is a mere 2 feet deep now.
“I’m not sure what this means,” said Harbormaster Richard Young. “Are
they going to remove 10 more feet of sediment, which would make the
actual depth 12 feet, or are they going to make the federal channel
exactly 10 feet deep? Either way it isn’t enough, because the design
specifications for the channel require a depth of 15 feet.”
Young added there are vessels in the harbor that need the 15-foot depth. Nevertheless, the acquisition of additional dredging money was heralded Wednesday. The money came in a supplemental appropriations bill, and according to Harbor Commissioner Scott Feller, the corps pursued the funds without the knowledge of local officials. “I think this really shows that the corps realizes the importance of our harbor,” said Feller. “Between their and Congressmen Thompson’s efforts, things are really happening.” Originally the corps had $2.1 million for dredging the federal channel, most of which U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson worked to get in an appropriation from the federal government. With the additional funds, the corps has $4.35 million for dredging the critical area of the federal channel. “We are ecstatic,” said Harbor Commission secretary Ray Martell. “This couldn’t have come at a better time.” Local officials feel that having direct face time with corps leadership made a difference in communicating the importance of the project. Feller, County Supervisor Dave Finigan, county Administrative Officer Jeannine Galatioto and Tri-Agency Economic Development Authority Executive Director Bill Renfroe all went to meet with corps officials in San Francisco on April 13 to communicate how important dredging in the next year was for the economic health of the area. “Meeting people face to face makes a big difference,” Feller said. “It helped tremendously that there was solidarity between the city, harbor and county.” Army Corps District Commander Colonel Laurence Farrell promised area representatives that the corps would begin dredging by September, Feller said. “There are some things that need to be done first,” Feller said. “We gave them our grain size tests, but they have additional testing that they are going to start in June.” The corps will be testing grain size June 1, and testing for biological contaminants at the end of June. At that point a decision can be made about where the sediment will be shipped. “If the grain size is large enough it can be taken to Whaler Island,” Young said previously. “Otherwise it will need to go somewhere else, which costs more money.” The sediment taken to Whaler Island eventually ends up nourishing South Beach, Feller said. Speaking to how important it is that dredging gets done this year, Renfroe said, “September will be here before we know it.” The critical portion of the federal channel lies off the north side of Citizens Dock and extends slightly into the mouth of the inner boat basin. The corps project is separate from the two other harbor dredging projects. One of those, dredging the mouth of the inner boat basin, was scheduled to begin this month and is waiting for a final dredging plan to be drawn up. |
