Corps Of Engineers Holds Dredging Workshops

The Portland district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers held two public workshops to explain the feasibility phase of the Columbia River Channel Deepening Study, the first in Portland, Ore., and the second in Longview, Wash. A shared effort between the Corps and the Port of Portland staff, the workshops were designed to allow the public to learn about environmental issues surrounding the five-year study.

The study will evaluate the need for modifying the existing project authorization. Alternatives will include determining the viability of deepening the 40-ft. (12.2-m) Columbia River navigation channel up to three feet. Costs of the $6.21 million study will be shared equally between the Corps and the Port of Portland. Between five and six million cubic yards (cy) of material are removed from the channel annually for maintenance. About 20 million cy more would need to be removed during a three-year period to reach the 43-ft. channel depth.