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Beneficial Reuse of Dredge Material

Beneficial reuse of dredged material continues to be an interesting and challenging topic. Sediment must be dredged to keep navigable waterways clear for vessels. As dredge disposal sites grow however, one must look for other solutions. One proposal has it to use dredge material for levee construction purposes and a few demonstration projects have already been done. Dredge material from Clifton Court Forebay was used for a levee project on Twitchell Island and dredge material from New York Slough was used on a demonstration project at Jersey Island. One example of an ongoing project is the disposal of dredge material from the Stockton and Sacramento Ship Channels at a stockpile site on Sherman Island where it is usedby the district for levee repairs. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has a large disposal site near Rio Vista and there have been no takers for the material even though the Corps has offered it for free. High costs associated with moving the material will continue to be an issue.

If you have any questions about this project please contact Bill Heyenbruch at (916) 651-7008 or by email at bheyenbr@water.ca.gov.