Well, it is just my opinion, but I think the dredging is a great thing. I was down at the beach this week and walked the whole distance from retaining wall to jetty and took lots of pictures. I stopped and talked to the foreman on the work team from RLB Construction in Port Lavaca and he was so friendly and full of information.

So, in the simplest terms, here is what I know. The Army Corp of Engineers, a US government agency dedicated to environmental sustainability, was awarded a contract to dredge the POC near-side of the channel known as the Intracoastal Waterway or ICW.

They have contracts all over, and several after our storm and hurricane season. Here, they only have a contract for the near or Port O’Connor side only at this date.
Large dredging equipment much like a huge vacuum on the big barge anchored out in the water vacuums up sludgy sand from the floor of the channel near the edge to maintain the channel depth and keep silt and scrap from washing into the channel during weather and tide changes.

This sandy mixture is pumped through large metal pipes to the POC beachfront where the contracted team from RLB moves and spreads the sandy mixture across the beach area expanding the sandy beach area and improving the existing beach front. These teams of workers are on rotating continuous shifts for at least a month and likely a bit more to complete this large project. The pumped up sand will be spread from the jetties up past the pier to in front of the retaining wall. Additional sandy beach area will result from their efforts.

The force of the sand being pumped to the beach from out in the channel can be high, so they have fenced off the area for protection. You can still safely use parts of the beach front and the park area during this work, and it is very interesting to see their progress. The only moving or mechanical equipment involved is the vacuum tubing which is monitored by two boats working in conjunction with the large barge housing the equipment.

It would be unusual for marine life to be harmed during this process. The sand may contain plant and animal life normal to the ocean bottom and may be pumped up on the beach and could cause a briny smell temporarily. Small crabs and other critters will soon adapt or relocate if they get caught in the move.

I will say that it was quite windy one day I was there and warm and calm the other; and neither day was there a bad or bothersome odor at the beach. It smelled like the ocean.

If, when the near side is done, the channel needs dredged on the far or opposite side, an additional contract will be negotiated. The noise, the orange fencing, the crew parking and buildings are all temporary and part of the process.

I found the guys working hard to finish in a timely manner and very interested in doing a great job for POC. They were very aware of our upcoming Crawfish Festival and had plans to limit their intrusion on beach use and activities in POC.

So, go by to have a look at what they are doing and get yourself a new sand pail for castle building because very soon we will have the new and improved Kingfisher Beach in Port O’Connor, Texas.

DREDGING UPDATE:

-Photo by Susan Braudaway

As this paper was about to go to press, the dredge barge struck a gas line and ignited (Tuesday night). There were no injuries and the gas line has been secured. We do not know how this will affect the completion of the dredging operation.