According to a statement released by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Holland-based The King Company was awarded the nearly $902,000 contract to hydraulically dredge both Holland and Grand Haven Harbors this spring.
Holland Harbor is a commercial harbor with more than 6.5 miles of maintained federal channel. The USACE is required to maintain depths of 23 feet at the harbor entrance and 21 feet within the inner channel and Lake Macatawa.
31,000 cubic yards of sediment are expected to be removed from the federal navigation channel and relocated through nearshore placement, meaning it will be piped offshore to the 8-12 feet-deep Lake Michigan bottom.
According to Liz Newell Wilkinson, operations manager at the Grand Haven Office of the USACE, “Keeping the shipping channel open provides a receiving port for the city and a safe harbor of refuge for vessels seeking shelter on Lake Michigan.”
The public is urged to avoid any areas that are actively being dredged and follow all posted warnings. Lights and signs will mark the sediment discharge pontoon near the shoreline.
Both Holland and Grand Haven dredging projects are expected to be completed by May 31st of this year.
