FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Manatee Pocket Dredge is in the Water

Stuart, Fla. - March 08, 2010 - The Manatee Pocket dredge placed in the water last month was a welcomed sign and key milestone marking the beginning of a project six years in the making. A crane launched the 50-ton Hydraulic Cutter Suction Dredge into the Pocket at Hinckley Yachts. It was then towed to Sandsprit Park where it will remain until dredging begins.

The contractor, Dickerson Florida Inc., will be working on the dredge while it is staged at Sandsprit Park in order to customize the electronics and mechanical components for the Manatee Pocket Dredging Project. Once all of the project elements are in place, dredging will begin in Crooked Creek and will continue through the main channel of the Pocket and along its tributaries until the 100-ft wide channel is completed.

Construction will begin in March. Updates will be included on the project’s web site at www.manateepocketproject.com.

About the Manatee Pocket Project
The Manatee Pocket Project is a dredging project that entails the removal of approximately 280,000 cubic yards of sediment from the Manatee Pocket in Port Salerno. Once completed, the project will result in a100-foot-wide channel that will provide navigational, economic and environmental enhancements to the Manatee Pocket and its tributaries.

The goals of the project are to:
• Improve navigation for all vessel operators using the Pocket
• Increase the draft and size of vessels able to navigate within the Pocket
• Define a channel for vessels to travel thereby minimizing impacts to adjacent shallow water areas
and protecting manatees;
• Remove detrimental sediments
• Improve the ability of marine life to re-establish in the Pocket
• Improve the water quality in the Pocket

Click Here to download pdf

For more information visit www.manateepocketproject.com

Contact:
Kathy Fitzpatrick
Martin County Coastal Engineer
772-288-5429
kfitzpat@martin.fl.us