Posted on November 11, 2021
There was a time when travelers in leisure boats might have flipped a coin before deciding whether to risk running aground in Georgia’s stretch of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) or bypassing the state via the Atlantic Ocean.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, responsible for maintaining a channel depth of at least 12 feet in the waterway, often cited budgetary issues for prolonged periods of neglect in the past. Environmental issues — where to deposit sediment extracted from the ICW — further complicated matters.
The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway runs from Norfolk, Virginia, to Key West, Florida. Boaters prefer its calm waters over the mood swings of the sea.
In addition to being used commercially and recreationally, the waterway is an economic friend to businesses and contributes handsomely to local tax tills. Unchecked shoaling along the water passage in Georgia costs the state and communities that dot it a small fortune in lost revenue.
But the head of an Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway Association, the members of which ply the waters of the ICW, says things are looking up.
“I am not sure about how many choose to bypass because of the waterway condition, but we do know that it is a shorter trip on the outside,” said Brad Pickel, executive direction of the association. “That being said, many cruising snowbirds value the beauty of Georgia’s natural areas and like to take their time on the winter migrations south to Florida.”
Jekyll Creek, the waterway hemming in Jekyll Island on the west side and part of the ICW, used to be a major obstacle to commercial and pleasure craft traveling north or south during low tide.
Among those who found Jekyll Creek an unpleasant experience was the crew of a 65-foot replica of the Niña, one of the three ships that “sailed the ocean blue” to bring Christopher Columbus to the New World in 1492. The replica was stuck for hours in mud in the creek, delaying its arrival in Brunswick.
That has been addressed.
“The good news is that the Georgia stretch of the waterway received federal funding a couple of years ago to dredge the Jekyll Creek area, and we are looking forward to the upcoming dredging projects and creation of a bird island (with the dredged material) in the Altamaha River,” Pickel said. “We believe that Georgia is definitely on the upswing, and the likelihood of federal funding for dredging is increasing.”
The creation of another bird island, in addition to the one in the Brunswick River, is one solution to the disposal of material taken from the waterway.
“We are also excited about the efforts to increase beneficial use of dredge material by the Savannah District through coordination with state and federal agencies and waterway stakeholders,” Pickel said. “This will be a win-win for the waterway and the beaches and marsh areas that will benefit from the added material.”
Andrews Island, the 900-acre island rising on East River directly across from the city of Brunswick, is not considered an option. Nesting birds and distance extracted sediment would have to be transported, removing it from the list of potential sites.
The waterway’s backburner status, its lack of funding and maintenance over the years, can likely be attributed in part to a shift in transportation priorities.
“The ICW was built to increase commercial traffic primarily which is now being served by trucking on our highways,” said Glynn County Commissioner Cap Fendig, owner of Dolphin Tours. “The ICW is now primarily a recreational vessel highway.”
Congress will add funds to the federal budget for commercial purposes long before it considers appropriations for recreational activities, a former congressman who fought for ICW funding told The News in a past interview.
Fendig recalled when the corps stopped routinely maintaining the waterway.
“This regular maintenance ended with the Iraq war when resources were diverted to support infrastructure,” Fendig said, noting funding was lost. “The normal winter maintenance plus new environmental rules continue to see the waterways slowly filling up.”
As for Jekyll Creek, “the dredging was helpful, but it’s filling back in,” Fendig said.
A study conducted in 2008 by the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, University of Georgia, reached these among other conclusions:
“Continued deterioration of the channel along the length of the ICW in Georgia could harm the economy of the coastal region if boaters reduce their spending by $89 million as our data suggest. The reduction in recreational boating in the coastal counties could result in nearly a $100 million loss to that economy, with an additional $27 million lost elsewhere in the state. More than 2,100 jobs with $54 million in personal income would be lost as a result.
“The loss of economic activity would reduce state and local government revenue by nearly $15 million annually. Most of the loss would be in state and local option sales taxes, but less business license and property tax revenue would be produced as well.”
Contracted by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, the study focused on the impact of recreational boating on the ICW and the economic loss due to insufficient dredging and maintenance of the ICW channel.
