WASHINGTON: A plan to dredge Charleston Harbor to 52 feet was approved this week, as was the resulting $213 million contract signed by the Army Corps of Engineers, the Post and Courier reported Monday.
The dredging plan will make the harbor and surrounding waterways the deepest on the East Coast, and thus perpetually accessible to post Panamax ships that must currently wait for rising tides to move easily in and out of the harbor. The $520 million project will be funded both by the state and by the federal government, and should be completed by 2020, when the new Leatherman Terminal opens for business. The Port of Charleston seeks to become the most accessible and convenient for 14,000 TEU or more sized ships on the East Coast, and another $1.5 billion in spending is planned to accommodate these ‘neopanamax’ vessels.
