The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, last week published a public notice for the proposed Port Tampa Bay expansion project.
The permit applicant proposes to expand existing port facilities (and associated dredging) to accommodate additional demand for deep-water cargo service in the Port Tampa Bay area.
Since the proposed work includes impacts to water bodies that are under jurisdiction of the Corps of Engineers, the applicant is required by the Clean Water Act to obtain a Department of the Army permit.
The proposal seeks to construct a 63-acre upland expansion to create seven new deep water berths, associated backlands and dredging of berths and turning basin.
The construction of the new berths will require placement of 7,080 linear feet of bulkhead along the frontage of the berths, 63 acres of backfill and the dredging of approximately 14 acres of bay bottom to a depth of -34 feet plus two feet of over-dredge for berths 155 through 158 and approximately 42 acres of bay bottom to a depth of -43 feet plus two feet of over-dredge for berths 152 through 154.
The proposed project will be constructed in three major phases.