Reference Site Location
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The Rhode Island Sound Disposal Site (RISDS) was designated in December 2004. This 3.24 km² (1 nautical mi²) site is centered at 41° 13.850' N, 71° 22.817' W (NAD 83) and lies approximately 21 km south of the entrance to Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island. It is situated within the Separation Zone for the Narragansett Bay Inbound and Outbound Traffic Lanes and lies within a topographic depression, with water depths from 36 to 39 m.

Prior to its site designation, it was selected for temporary use and was employed during 2003-2004 for placement of over 3.4 million m³ (4.5 million yd³) of sediment from the Providence River (primarily from the Federal Navigation Project). The management strategy during the Providence project was to dispose at a carefully selected series of north-south-trending points in order to create a continuous ridge of sediment along the western edge of the site. This ridge created an artificial containment structure along the western boundary of the disposal site in order to minimize lateral spread of unconsolidated sediments deposited in the future.

The Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) may be viewed at: www.epa.gov/region1/eco/ridredge/index.html

The Final Rule for the site designation is available at 40 CFR Part 228.

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Bathymetry

Relevant DAMOS Reports:

No. 155: Monitoring Surveys of the Rhode Island Sound Disposal Site, Summer 2003 (full report available)