Future dredge dump sites proposed for Baltimore port
Maryland’s Dredged Material Management Program has presented its recommendations for future dredge material dump sites to Gov. Robert Ehrlich for presentation to the Maryland General Assembly in 2004.
The report calls for the Maryland legislature to authorize the initiation of feasibility studies to use Masonville, Fairfield BP, Sparrows Point, James Island, and Barren Island as potential dredge placement sites. It also requested the creation of oversight committees to chaperone these options.
“We use 1.5 million cubic yards of sediment as a working number for our annual amount necessary for disposal,” said Frank Hamons, the Maryland Port Administration’s harbor development chief. “Since inevitably we will run out of space, the final report lists as a primary goal, innovative use of at least one third of this material by 2023.”
The report was put together by a 30-person group, comprising government officials and community group representatives.