Last Friday, Congressman Lee Zeldin went behind the scenes on the CR McCaskill, the dredge currently completing the emergency dredge of Moriches Inlet.
He used the opportunity to announce the official launch of the Moriches Inlet Emergency Dredge operations.
Following the kick-off, Congressman Zeldin boarded the CR McCaskill Dredging Vessel in the inlet to observe operations and thank its crew for their hard work.
“ This is great news for our coastal economy, commercial and recreational fishermen and all whose livelihoods rely on the vitality of our communities’ waterways. Huge thank you to Colonel Asbery and his amazing team for their hard work and cooperation along the way ,” said Congressman Lee Zeldin .
According to the officials, the emergency dredging is being done to restore Moriches Inlet to its federally authorized depth of 10 feet deep and 200 feet wide.
The project uses the Cutter Suction Dredge and 30,000 linear feet of submerged pipeline that will transfer up to 12,000 cubic yards of sand a day, 5 miles to Smith Point County Park where bulldozers will shape the sand to provide additional coastal storm risk reduction measures for this area.
Overall, the project includes dredging and removal of an estimated 158,000 cubic yards of sand, which is being beneficially reused 5 miles west of the Inlet to provide additional coastal storm risk reduction measures for Smith Point County Park. Work that is currently underway is scheduled for completion by November 1st 2018.