Posted on March 7, 2022
MANASQUAN — Dredge spoils that have been stored over the winter at the Fisherman’s Cove Conservation Area will be removed over the next few months, following the New Jersey Department of Transportation’s $7.2 million Manasquan River navigation dredging project last year.
State contractors are to begin transporting the dredged materials to the Monmouth County Reclamation Center in Tinton Falls to be used as landfill cover.
The removal of the dredged material is expected to be completed by the end of April, said Andrew Spears, assistant director of the Monmouth County Parks and Recreation System, which operates the 55-acre Fisherman’s Cove Conservation Area off Third Avenue.
Approximately 88,000 cubic yards of material were dredged from waterways on both the Monmouth and Ocean county sides of the Manasquan River. The waterways include Sawmill Creek, Riviera Beach, Glimmer Glass, Watson’s Creek, Sherman’s Creek, Wills Hole Thorofare, Manasquan Yacht Club, Clarks Landing and Debbie’s Creek channels.
The material was taken to two locations, both at Fisherman’s Cove.
Dog Beach received 30,000 cubic yards of beach-quality sand from Wills Hole Thorofare, which was hydraulically pumped onto the riverbank.
The other dredged material, which is to be removed, was pumped to an elevated dewatering site that uses geotextile bags allowing water to separate from the sediment particles.
“Eventually, it will be restored to a natural maritime forest with holly, bayberry and beach plums,” said Mr. Spears, and work will continue to remove invasive nonnative species such as phragmite reeds. “We want to restore it to a more natural habitat … a good, healthy diverse ecosystem” that can support migratory bird species.
