Maintenance Dredging of Port Hacking Navigation Channels Delayed
On Tuesday 10 April the dredging contractor advised Council that the dredging of Port Hacking has been further delayed. The dredging contractor has advised that they have finished the job in the Tweed River that was delaying their start on Port Hacking, but they've identified some major repairs to their large dredge (The Faucon) that will need to be rectified urgently to ensure that there is not a failure during the Port Hacking dredging operations. It is likely that the repairs will take a few weeks. Parks and Waterways staff are in contact with the dredging contractor several times a week to receive progress updates. It is hoped that dredging can commence in May, but further updates will be provided as they become available.
During this round of maintenance dredging 38,900 to 61,150 cubic metres of material will be removed from navigation channels in the Port Hacking. This will help ensure safe navigation for the Bundeena ferry and private boats. The project will take approximately 8 weeks to complete.
In 1995 Council entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the management of dredging within Port Hacking with the previous State Government. The MoU states, in part, that dredging work needs to be carried out on the navigation channels within Port Hacking, to ensure ease of operations for public / private vessels and that the responsibility for the dredging lies with the State Government. The MoU commits the State Government to regularly dredge the channels in order to maintain navigable depth. Since 1995, the NSW Government has funded four rounds of dredging of the Port Hacking navigation channels with Council administering the contract under a consultancy arrangement.
The dredging campaign is being managed by Sutherland Shire Council's Parks & Waterways Branch with the assistance of Council's Survey Branch. For the coming dredging campaign the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage, Department of Premier and Cabinet (formerly the NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water) has provided Council with a total of $2.56M in the form of two grants. The grants are intended to cover the full cost of maintenance dredging of the navigation channels. Under the funding agreement Council takes responsibility for obtaining all approvals necessary for the works, preparation of contract specification and tender documents, calling of tenders and contract supervision and administration.
After consultation with a group of local surfers, in what is believed to be a first for a Sydney beach, the sand will be dumped strategically in water 8m deep offshore from the sea wall at North Cronulla to form a mound or 'sea-slug'. The aim is to create a bombora that it is hoped will bend and refract the swell to create improved breaking waves near shore for surfers. More information is available in the related links below.
More Information
Parks & Waterways
Phone 02 9710 0473