Dredging at Harbor will remove almost a million cubic yards of dirt. Photo by George Robertson.
The government FY16 Work Plan has been released and Ventura Harbor received an additional $2.5 million for the dredging of the Harbor federal entrance channel. This brings the total available money for dredging this winter to $7.3 million, which will enable the Army Corps of Engineers to dredge about 850,000 cubic yards of sand. This will put the Harbor in great shape again so boats can safely navigate the Harbor entrance. Storms and strong ocean currents could delay the dredging, though this is not expected to occur.
Harbor merchants and commercial fishing vessels have been hurt financially by the closing of the Harbor entrance and pleasure boats have been inconvenienced.
The Ventura Harbor Patrol has been escorting some essential boats in and out of the Harbor, and some pleasure boats that shouldn’t have been sailing out of the Harbor have been escorted back in by the Patrol.
The Harbor entrance became un-passable when a large amount of sand blocked its entrance due to large swells. It was closed on January 22 as a result.
A network of pipes will carry the removed sand to some local beaches which were eroded by the same winter storms that closed the Harbor.
