Savannah Harbor Expansion Project Update March 2017

The Savannah Harbor Expansion Project (SHEP) gained more traction in March, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District.

SHEP will deepen the Savannah Harbor federal shipping channel from a depth of -42 feet to -47 feet, producing substantial economic benefits for the nation by enabling larger and more heavily-loaded vessels to call on the harbor with fewer tidal delays.

According to the Corps, several features of the project are on schedule to be completed by the end of 2017.

The features include:

• First Dike Raising (June) – When finished, the dike at Dredged Material Containment Area 14A will have been raised five feet in preparation to receive the dredged material from the inner harbor;
• Raw Water Storage Impoundment (July) – The 97 million-gallon reservoir will provide an additional source of fresh water in rare cases when low river flows and unusually high tides reduce the quality of available water near Abercorn Creek;
• CSS Georgia Recovery (September) – This summer, archaeologists and the Navy will return to recover the remaining two casemate sections of the CSS Georgia which were unable to be recovered during the 2015 effort;
• Dissolved Oxygen Injection System (December) – The system will force oxygen into river water to ensure current levels of dissolved oxygen are maintained before the shipping channel is deepened;
• Sediment Basin Tide Gate Removal (December) – The structure was originally constructed to reduce shoaling in the Savannah River’s main channel.