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Post by shot33gun9 on Aug 18, 2023 17:09:51 GMT -5
Still not approved, but eventually will be I'm guessing. Designed to deepen the entire shipping channel from 43ft to 47ft so the monster cruise and container ships can get to the port. Estimated to cost 1b but will surely escalate to 5b upon completion and will most likely kill whats left of our seagrass. If that doesn't prove the responsible parties don't care about the health of the bay, what does?
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Post by carlf on Aug 18, 2023 17:35:50 GMT -5
What is your basis for saying dredging for the deepening and widening will kill seagrass?
The channel is a good distance from any seagrass beds and given the substrate, turbidity during dredging should not be significant. Not non existent but not bad enough to reach seagrass beds.
Dredge materials will be placed in upland DAs, taken offshore, used to fill historic dredge holes with poor water quality and/or otherwise used beneficialy. I've seen nothing to indicate that any sediment will be placed in seagrass beds.
Current consensus is We are losing seagrass due to high nutrient and red tide. Higher temps aren't helping.
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Post by shot33gun9 on Aug 18, 2023 18:16:31 GMT -5
Silt carried by the tides is my concern. That's a longterm project, years maybe, the impact will be noticed but brushed aside...gotta get them monster ships to port
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Post by Flatsrunner on Aug 18, 2023 20:11:48 GMT -5
Silt carried by the tides is my concern. That's a longterm project, years maybe, the impact will be noticed but brushed aside...gotta get them monster ships to port I would think they are required by law to keep silt booms around around the ongoing work to mitigate the silt and debris to a minimum, It will disrupt the fish somewhat I'm sure and impact on the habitat, who knows? |
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Post by shot33gun9 on Aug 18, 2023 21:06:38 GMT -5
Tampa Bay Waterkeeper is opposed and said it would be detrimental to the bay, and I agree, but it will happen
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Post by carlf on Aug 19, 2023 8:05:10 GMT -5
They will be required to monitor turbidity and meet mixing zone vs background differential requirements, at the dredge and at any disposal area.
I think Tampa Baywatch's main issues are increased ship wakes and increased salinity. Given that Tampa Bay is already a very saline system, I'm not sure that's a big issue.
I've worked around dredging projects for almost 30 years, mostly as a regulator and someone advocating for beneficial use of dredged sediment for ecosystems restoration and preserving long shore transport. Dredging and sediment placement techniques have changed since I first started in 1997 and the emphasis has gone from as cheap and as fast as possible to recognizing that we have to do things in an environmentally conscious manner. It's usually a win-win when done right. Not saying there won't be short term disruptions but it also won't be the environmental mess like used to happen 30-40 years ago.
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Post by Flatsrunner on Aug 19, 2023 9:14:16 GMT -5
They will be required to monitor turbidity and meet mixing zone vs background differential requirements, at the dredge and at any disposal area. I think Tampa Baywatch's main issues are increased ship wakes and increased salinity. Given that Tampa Bay is already a very saline system, I'm not sure that's a big issue. I've worked around dredging projects for almost 30 years, mostly as a regulator and someone advocating for beneficial use of dredged sediment for ecosystems restoration and preserving long shore transport. Dredging and sediment placement techniques have changed since I first started in 1997 and the emphasis has gone from as cheap and as fast as possible to recognizing that we have to do things in an environmentally conscious manner. It's usually a win-win when done right. Not saying there won't be short term disruptions but it also won't be the environmental mess like used to happen 30-40 years ago. I've seen dredging projects projects before where they pump it further towards the shoreline or outward of the main channel, Question I have are they going to transport it to a more beneficial area such as mangrove islands or other areas further away? |
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Post by shot33gun9 on Aug 19, 2023 10:27:05 GMT -5
Hey carl, who signs your paycheck, the Port Authority? Lol
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Post by shot33gun9 on Aug 19, 2023 10:52:52 GMT -5
There are 2 big spoil islands at the mouth of the Alafia river built when the river was dredged back in the 1930s. They also dug a ship turning basin at Mosaic. It took decades before any substantial plant life started to grow on that spoil material but now is an important sanctuary for birds. I went out there once back in the 70s and they were a wasteland of shells and limestone debris
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Post by Flatsrunner on Aug 19, 2023 12:23:48 GMT -5
There are 2 big spoil islands at the mouth of the Alafia river built when the river was dredged back in the 1930s. They also dug a ship turning basin at Mosaic. It took decades before any substantial plant life started to grow on that spoil material but now is an important sanctuary for birds. I went out there once back in the 70s and they were a wasteland of shells and limestone debris Alafia river had the same issues as other rivers and bays in the last 50 years, a lot spills and discharges that nearly destroyed that river, Severe pollution was bad enough that the health dept. declared it was a dead "industrial river" unfit for any life. The Mines were largely responsible for that. |
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Post by shot33gun9 on Aug 19, 2023 19:40:14 GMT -5
I remember that, some big acid spill that got into the headwaters of the Alafia and came all the way to the bay...killed everthing I heard. All that poison is buried in the mud now
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