Posted on July 29, 2018
An eight-month maintenance dredging of portions of the Intracoastal Waterway and the Ponce de Leon Inlet is expected to begin in August. Dredging keeps the channels open for safe navigation.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is funding the project and awarded the contract to Cavache of Pompano Beach. Land easements are provided by Volusia County and the City of New Smyrna Beach.
The project will consist of dredging approximately 500,000 cubic yards of material from the Intracoastal Waterway in the vicinity of Ponce de Leon Inlet and the Ponce de Leon Inlet navigation channel to a depth of 12 feet plus 2 feet of allowable over-depth. Excavated material will be piped and placed in a nearshore area about 1.6 miles south of the inlet, which will help nourish New Smyrna Beach.
Additionally, approximately 10,000 cubic yards of material will be dredged from the Coast Guard Station at Ponce Inlet and placed in the Rose Bay disposal area.
The project is unique in that it will be a full hydraulic dredge of the inlet to hit specific water depths throughout the entire inlet. Typical inlet maintenance is done with a hopper dredge, with a primary focus on reducing shoaling as much as possible in a short amount of time. Ponce de Leon Inlet has not had maintenance this significant in over 10 years.
Source: Volusia County Florida
