Port of Long Beach set to improve efficiency with $170m dredging project
A channel deepening project that will help move cargo more efficiently to and from the US advanced this week after the Long Beach Harbor Commission concluded an extensive environmental review process and greenlit the endeavour.
The Port of Long Beach and the federal government will share the costs, estimated at almost $170m. The port’s portion is estimated at $109m.
“We already accommodate some of the largest ships in the world here,” said Port of Long Beach executive director Mario Cordero. “Deepening and improving our waterways will give these vessels more room to manoeuvre, and to do so more efficiently by taking on more containers, reducing the number of ship calls and associated emissions.”
The project includes deepening the Long Beach approach channel from 76 feet to 80 feet deep, easing turning bends in the main channel to deepen a wider area to 76 feet, deepening parts of the west basin from 50 to 55 feet, constructing an approach channel and turning basin to Pier J South with a depth of 55 feet, improving the breakwaters at the entrance to Pier J, and depositing dredged material in nearshore sites for refuse or in federally approved ocean disposal sites.
In October 2021, the US Army Corps of Engineers concluded a multi-year study that showed deepening and widening channels in the harbour would lead to improved vessel navigation, safety and national economic benefits of almost $21m a year.
