Arlington, Va., — March 29, 2013 — The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission announces the availability of the latest installment of its Habitat Management Series, Harbor Deepening: Potential Habitat and Natural Resource Issues.
The document was developed by the Commission’s Habitat Committee in response to the growing number of Atlantic ports involved in or considering a harbor deepening project to accommodate deep draft vessels such as the Post-Panamax class vessels.
In 2014, an upgrade of the locks in the Panama Canal will be completed, allowing for passage of “Post-Panamax” class vessels with maximum dimensions of 1,200 feet long, 160 feet wide, and a draft of 49.9 feet. The present expansion of the locks as well as future expansion, which ultimately will service ships with a draft approaching 60 feet, have major implications for economic drivers affecting ports and harbors. Not surprisingly, multiple ports along the Atlantic coast (e.g. Norfolk, Baltimore, and New York/New Jersey) have initiated navigation infrastructure improvements to accommodate the larger, deeper draft vessels. Other ports, such as Philadelphia and Miami, are entering construction phases, while others, including Fort Lauderdale, Savannah and Charleston, are aggressively pursuing deepening projects. Clearly these projects can have tremendous economic consequences for local, regional, and national economies. Likewise, however, they also represent large-scale modifications of existing and historical fish habitat. In most cases, they also represent a progression in a series of incremental improvements to navigation infrastructure that has occurred in tandem with other alterations to coastal, estuarine, and tidal riverine bathymetric features.
While the issues associated with harbor deepening projects can be geographically specific, the Harbor Deepening Report describes a number of alterations associated with these projects that should be considered when evaluating the potential effects on habitats and associated biological resources. These can include changes in the water quality and physical characteristics of the harbor and associated drainage systems, as well as both direct and indirect effects on critical biological resources. Mitigation measures for these projects will vary greatly with the geography of the port and maybe triggered by adaptive management measures. The report provides sources of information and documents related to ongoing or planned deepening projects. The report, now available on the Commission's website here, will continue to be updated as new sources of information become available. For more information, please contact Megan Caldwell, Habitat Coordinator, at megfishconsult@gmail.com.