J.F. Brennan Construction of La Crosse, Wisc., is ready to begin work on the 2020 Massey’s Ditch dredging project.
Massey’s Ditch, an important navigation channel that runs between Rehoboth Bay and Indian River Bay, will be dredged starting this January.
During the works, the waterway will be dredged to a width of 100 feet and a depth of 7.5 feet below Mean Lower Low Water (MLLW).
The contractor will remove approximately 100,000 cubic yards of material from the channel and adjacent areas including the entrance to Baker’s Channel, on the north side of Lynch Thicket Island, and a large shoal between the south end of Lynch Thicket Island and Middle Island.
According to the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, dredging is scheduled to begin in early January and will take approximately 31 days to complete the works.
The dredged material will be used to re-nourish the beach north of the inlet providing erosion and storm damage protection to the Route 1 bridge approach. It will also restore a heavily used public recreational beach area.