South Port has contracted Heron Construction to remove fractured and fragmented rock remaining in the port entrance channel from previous dredging campaigns.
The work will be carried out under an existing coastal permit issued by Environment Southland under the Resource Management Act.
This will allow South Port to remove any already blasted and fragmented rock remaining in the channel from "capital dredging" campaigns more than 40 years ago.
Blasting of the channel completed in the 1980s led to some fragmented rock being unable to be retrieved due to the engineering limitations of dredging machinery available at the time.
The fractured rock is a potential impediment to planned future capital dredging operations, which are the subject of a current resource consent application.
The proposed six-week clearance work does not include any blasting activity.
Dredging is hoped to start early next week and be completed towards the end of September. There are several variables associated with a project such as this, and therefore this timeline is subject to change.
Given the dredging plant remains stationary while in operation, it is expected there will be little or no impact on commercial or recreational users of the channel.
The South Port marine team will be managing access to the channel for larger vessels coming into port, and the dredging plant will be relocated outside the channel boundary to allow ships to navigate safely.
This project is not part of the capital dredging proposal now going through the resource consent process. The capital dredging proposal, which is likely to include rock breaking and blasting, is scheduled to start in the next 24 months — subject to resource consent being obtained and contractor availability.
Staff Reporter
