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Corps, Maine DOT postpone March 26 Belfast public meeting on Searsport Harbor dredging due to snowstorm

Published March 24, 2014
Aerial view of Searsport Harbor, Searsport, Maine, which is located on Penobscot Bay, about four miles northeast of Belfast Harbor and 26 miles north of Rockland Harbor. The project was completed in 1964 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and consists of an access channel, 35-feet deep and 500-feet wide, west of Sears Island; and a 35-feet deep turning basin extending from the end of the access channel to the piers at Mack Point. The turning basin has a maximum width of 1,500 feet.

Aerial view of Searsport Harbor, Searsport, Maine, which is located on Penobscot Bay, about four miles northeast of Belfast Harbor and 26 miles north of Rockland Harbor. The project was completed in 1964 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and consists of an access channel, 35-feet deep and 500-feet wide, west of Sears Island; and a 35-feet deep turning basin extending from the end of the access channel to the piers at Mack Point. The turning basin has a maximum width of 1,500 feet.

Aerial view of Searsport Harbor, Searsport, Maine, which is located on Penobscot Bay, about four miles northeast of Belfast Harbor and 26 miles north of Rockland Harbor. The project was completed in 1964 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and consists of an access channel, 35-feet deep and 500-feet wide, west of Sears Island; and a 35-feet deep turning basin extending from the end of the access channel to the piers at Mack Point. The turning basin has a maximum width of 1,500 feet.

Aerial view of Searsport Harbor, Searsport, Maine, which is located on Penobscot Bay, about four miles northeast of Belfast Harbor and 26 miles north of Rockland Harbor. The project was completed in 1964 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and consists of an access channel, 35-feet deep and 500-feet wide, west of Sears Island; and a 35-feet deep turning basin extending from the end of the access channel to the piers at Mack Point. The turning basin has a maximum width of 1,500 feet.

CONCORD, Mass. – Due to an approaching snowstorm in the region, a projected snowfall of 4 to 8 inches in Belfast and concerns expressed by the public of holding a meeting at that time, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District, and the Maine Department of Transportation have postponed the Water Quality Certification Pre-application public informational meeting scheduled for Wednesday, March 26, 2014 in Belfast on the proposed improvement dredging plan for the Searsport Harbor Federal Navigation Project in Searsport, Maine. The Maine DOT is the non-Federal sponsor for the USACE Feasibility study.

 

An approaching snowstorm, projected snowfall of 4 to 8 inches in Belfast, and public concern voiced about people not being able to get to the meeting, were considerations in postponing the meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to inform the public of the project proposal and its anticipated environmental impacts and to advise the public of opportunities for public comment to the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. The meeting had been scheduled for Wednesday, March 26, 2014 at the University of Maine in Belfast.

 

The public informational meeting has been rescheduled for Tuesday, April 8, 2014 at the University of Maine, Hutchinson Center, located at 80 Belmont Avenue in Belfast, Maine. Doors will open at noon and the meeting will be held from 12:30 – 2:30 p.m.

 

In response to a resolution of Congress dated July 26, 2000, the USACE New England District in partnership with the Maine Department of Transportation, Maine Port Authority, has undertaken a Feasibility study of navigation improvements to the existing Federal Navigation Project at Searsport Harbor (Mack Point) in Searsport, Maine. 

 

The selected project would deepen the existing entrance channel and turning basin from a depth of -35 feet to -40 feet at mean lower low water.  In addition, the entrance channel, currently 500 feet wide at its narrowest point, would be widened to 650 feet, and a maneuvering area adjacent to State Pier’s east berth in Long Cove would be created.  Dredged material would be disposed of at the identified disposal site in Penobscot Bay.  With the proposed project, deep draft vessels would be able to access the port more efficiently, and transportation costs for goods arriving at the port would be reduced.

 

Meeting contacts: the Maine Department of Transportation, Maine Port Authority, (Attn: Executive Director John  Henshaw), 16 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0016 or by email to john.h.henshaw@maine.gov; or the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District, Engineering and Planning Division (Attn: Study Manager Barbara Blumeris), 696 Virginia Road, Concord, MA 01742-2751 or by email to cenae-ep@usace.army.mil.


Contact
Tim Dugan
978-318-8264
cenae-pa@usace.army.mil

Release no. 2014-031