Congressional staff visits Poplar Island

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District recently welcomed congressional staff from the offices of Senator Alsobrooks, Senator Van Hollen, Rep. Johnny Olszewski, and Rep. April McClain Delaney for a site visit on Poplar Island.

USACE and project leadership, gave guests a tour of the decades-long environmental infrastructure project in the Chesapeake Bay off Talbot County, Maryland.

Poplar Island, once on the verge of disappearing, is now an international model for habitat restoration and the beneficial use of dredged material.

By beneficially re-using dredged material from the Port of Baltimore approach channels, Poplar Island restores a once-vanishing island ecosystem — and keeps this vital waterway open for business.

Mid-Bay, located adjacent to James and Barren Islands off the coast of Dorchester County, follows in the footsteps of Poplar’s success, eventually providing hundreds of acres of wetland and terrestrial habitat for fish, shellfish, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals through the beneficial use of dredged material over the next several decades.

The Mid-Bay project is anticipated to be completed in 2067 – providing more than 40 years of capacity to place almost 100 million cubic yards of dredged material.