Dredging of Barnegat Inlet underway

The Philadelphia District of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and its contractor are conducting dredging operations in the Oyster Creek portion of the Barnegat Inlet federal navigation project.

The sediment is being pumped to a location as part of a multi-phase effort to create an island in the bay.

According to the Army Corps official announcement, “when sediment is clean, USACE looks for opportunities to use the material beneficially.”

Barnegat Inlet is one of the most dangerous inlets on the East Coast from a navigation standpoint.

The District typically dredges the inlet twice a year with the USACE-owned dredge Currituck or Murden.

USACE said that a large amount of sediment remains shoaled in the state and federal navigation channels with limited funds and places to put the material.