Posted on March 13, 2024
Another sign of spring along the Lakeshore is the annual dredging of Lake Michigan harbors.
This is the first full week of the 2024 Detroit District season to clear commercial pathways onto the big lake, with Holland-based King Company once again handling the chores for the US Army Corps of Engineers. Crews began last Friday in Muskegon Harbor to remove about 133,000 cubic yards of sediment to an area from Muskegon’s municipal water filtration plant south for about three thousand feet.
The importance of keeping harbors free from shoaling is seen in a couple of ship groundings in this area from shifting sand and stone sediment due to wave action during the past two years. Other harbors such as Grand Haven, Ludington, Holland, South Haven and St. Joseph will also be cleared through late June, and should cost about $800,000.
Army Corps of Engineers officials caution the public to steer clear of active dredging operations, follow all posted warning signs, and safety cones will be placed around active bulldozing and pipeline discharge efforts.
