The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Galveston District, the Texas General Land Office, Cameron County, and the City of South Padre Island are renourishing approximately one half mile of South Padre Island’s beaches using sand dredged from the Brownsville Ship Channel. They began dredging operations on the 3rd of this month.
The Hopper, a sophisticated dredging vessel, will transfer sand to the northern section of the South Padre beach without the need to lay five miles of pipe from the channel to the beach which saves time and money on the project. The estimated savings from utilizing the Hopper vessel is $1.3 million. This project is the first time the Hopper has been used on the Texas Coast.
This project is a win-win for everyone involved because the ship channel gets proper maintenance and the beaches are aided against erosion. The sand helps build dunes that will serve as a barrier in the event of a storm.
Work is scheduled to be completed by mid-December in order to avoid both the turtle nesting season and spring break.
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