Multiple mechanical problems have delayed the dredging project in the San Jacinto River, pushing the timeline back to at least the end of May next year.
During the week of Thanksgiving, the Houston District E office sent out a press release regarding an additional dredging project that would take place in 2019 removing the additional sediment located in the "mouthbar" of the San Jacinto River.
Read Original Release Here -->
www.atascocita.com/m sg/news.php?news_id= 1359726&fb=1
There are two dredges currently operating in the West Fork of the San Jacinto River. Dredge 1 is located just upstream of the West Lake Houston Parkway Bridge and Dredge 2 is operating near River Grove Park. Dredging has been occurring 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Since the last update, the Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) has notified District E that due to various mechanical issues with both dredges the original emergency dredging project is currently delayed by 30 days. The ACOE is withholding payment to the contractors until they get back on schedule. This delay means that the existing project is not expected to conclude until the end of May 2019, without accounting for any possible future delays.
To date, the existing project is currently about 20% completed and has removed nearly 300,000 cubic yards of sediment debris from the West Fork of the San Jacinto River since September 20, 2018. An additional 65 tons of miscellaneous general debris has been removed (wood, trees, trash, tires, etc.). Between now and the end of May 2019, there is an estimated 1.6 million cubic yards of sediment and 335 tons of general debris that will be removed from the West Fork of the San Jacinto River before this initial dredging project is completed.
Due to the nature of these dredging activities it is important for residents to be aware of major safety concerns that exist on the San Jacinto River while dredging is taking place. Orange, yellow and white marker buoys located throughout the river are connected to pipelines carrying high pressure sand slurry, and should be avoided.
All recreational boat traffic should pass by all working vessels at a "No Wake" speed. Extreme caution and idle speed should be exercised when passing on either side of the Dredges as there are submerged cables coming off both sides of the dredges to anchors. There is also a closure of the San Jacinto River's North Fork just to the west of US Highway 59 extending north approximately 1.5 miles to the Eagle Sorters sand quarry. This stretch of the river is closed to all recreational vessel traffic for the remainder of the dredging project.
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