Friday, August 24, 2012

Savannah's deep dredging okayed by Army Corps of Engineers

Savannah, the fourth largest port in the country, will proceed with a $652 million deepening of its river channel to 47 feet after receiving official approval from the Army Core of Engineers. The deeper channel will allow the port to receive post-Panamax vessels expected to call after the widening of the Panama Canal in 2014.

The dredging process will take up to five years. Georgia Ports Authority executive director Curtis Foltz has said it will be completed by 2016, although other officials reportedly believe it will take longer.

The cost of the Savannah deepening project is 20 percent over what Congress has authorized, so Congress will have to appropriate additional funds, according to the report by Lt. Gen. Thomas Bostick, commander of the Corps. Georgia's share of the cost is $198 million.

About $311 million, or 47 percent, of the project's cost will be spent on environmental mitigation, including constructing fish passageways, installing a "bubbler" system to boost oxygen levels and responsible disposition of dredge spoil.

For more of the Reuters story: Savannah's deep dredging

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