FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Manatee Pocket’s dredged material being removed from handling area - Dredging temporarily suspended while trucks remove dredged material from site.

Stuart, Fla. - April 22, 2011 - Dredging of the Manatee Pocket will once again be temporarily suspended to allow the contractor, Dickerson Florida, Inc., to remove dredged material from the material handling area off of US1. This will be the second pause needed for sediment removal before the project is completed. Earlier this year about 20 percent of the sediment in the material handling area was removed. “We removed enough material to allow us to finish dredging in the current location and move our equipment away from residential areas,” Dickerson Project Manager Jeff Erhardt said.

Dredging will be suspended for up to two months while the material handling area is drained to make enough room for the remainder of the dredged material from the Pocket. “We expected this second round of sediment removal would be needed before dredging was finished,” Martin County Coastal Engineer Kathy FitzPatrick explained. “At this point the project is still on schedule for completion in the fall.” Citizens can expect to see trucks hauling the material from the handling area along main roads and highways to a mine in western Martin County.

Once dredged material is removed from the handling area, dredging will resume in the main channel of the Manatee Pocket and the two remaining tributaries. For construction updates, visit www.manateepocketproject.com.

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