BIG RIVER COALITION
Sean M. Duffy, Sr.
Executive Director
4741 Utica Street, Suite 200
Metairie, LA 70006
Office (504) 833-4190 x 805
Cellular (504) 338-3165
[email protected]
January 5, 2015
Lower Mississippi River (LMR) Dredging Update 1515
Members,
The Corps' Mississippi Valley New Orleans District (MVN) presently has no dredges
working on the deep-draft navigation channel from Baton Rouge to the Gulf of Mexico.
However, the first dredging contract of Fiscal Year 2015 (Cutterhead Contract #3-2014) for the
area of Southwest Pass (SWP) has been awarded to the cutterhead dredge G.D. MORGAN
(Weeks Marine).
Dustpan Dredge(s) on the Crossings:
WALLACE McGEORGE: The dustpan dredge completed its assignment at Baton
Rouge Front near Mile 231 Above Head of Passes (AHP) on January 13, 2014.
Hopper Dredge Disposal Area (HDDA):
CAPTAIN FRANK: The cutterhead dredge began dredging the HDDA at the Head of
Passes on November 10, 2014 and has beneficially placed over 1.7 million cubic yards of
material on the east side of the LMR ship channel. This dredging project recently placed a
discharge sediment pipeline under the river channel (east to west) to direct beneficial dredge
material into approved disposal areas in the West Bay. The dredging will continue beneficially
placing material on the eastern side until mid-February (2015). Then it will switch over and
begin pumping through the pipeline and into the West Bay receiving area.
The pipeline placement was conducted during the two planned closures in the vicinity of Head
of Passes:
1) The first closure was conducted on Wednesday, December 17, 2014 and was scheduled
from 0600 hours to 1800 hours, but required an additional two hours. Official closure
times were from 0600 hours to 2000 hours.
BIG RIVER COALITION
2) The second closure was implemented on Friday, December 19, 2014. This closure was
also scheduled from 0600 hours to 1800 hours, but was completed early than anticipated.
The channel was closed from 0600 hours to 1200 hours.
A third closure will be required after the completion of the HDDA dredging project to
accommodate the removal of the dredge pipeline. The contract requires the removal of 5
million cubic yards of material from the HDDA. The dredging contractor anticipates
completion of this assignment by April 2015. Details on the third closure will not be available
until dredging is completed.
Cutterhead Dredge(s) at the Head of Passes:
G.D. MORGAN: The cutterhead dredge is expected to commence dredging at Mile 1.6
AHP on the eastern side of the navigation channel by January 12, 2015. The dredge will work
downriver towards the area of Head of Passes. The channel conditions in this area of SWP have
improved over the last few weeks but remain deficient. However, the shoaling in the reach
from Mile 2 AHP to Mile 1 Below Head of Passes has a range of reduced controlling widths
from 650 to 550 feet wide. Authorized channel width in this reach of the LMR is 750 feet. The
Head of Passes area shoals in rapidly during stage level rises and the cutterhead will be utilized
to restore channel dimensions. The material will be beneficially used and promote increased
habitat restoration in the environmentally challenged area of the Mississippi River Delta.
The increased beneficial use of dredged material or sediment recycling continues to be a
primary goal of the Big River Coalition. These restoration efforts were highlighted in a January
2, 2015 article in The Advocate by Amy Wold, titled “Industry wants a say in coastal
restoration.” This article is available by clicking here.
Best Regards,
Sean
Sean M. Duffy, Sr.
Executive Director
Phone (504) 833-4190 x805
Cell
(504) 338-3165
Fax
(888) 254-4553
www.bigrivercoalition.org
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