Cecil County Government: Cecil County To Receive $2.4 Million For Dredging Of North East River

Press release from Cecil County Government:

01/25/2022

Cecil County to Receive $2.4 million for Dredging of North East River

Elkton, MD: Cecil County Government will receive $2.4 million for maintenance dredging of the North East River federal channel in Cecil County, Maryland. Funding for the project has been awarded via two recently enacted laws — the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the 2022 Disaster Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act. The United States Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District Office, will be the recipient of the funds and work in coordination with local government through project competition.

“We are extremely pleased to have worked with the Army Corps of Engineers to secure these critical funds to support the much-needed dredging initiative”, stated County Executive Hornberger. “As Cecil County residents, we are proud of our shorelines and enjoy the luxury of having tremendous access to the waters of the Chesapeake Bay. This dredging effort will promote continued job creation at our local marinas, support our vibrant tourism industry, and ensure our residents continued enjoyment of our local waterways”.

This North East River channel was last dredged by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in 1999, and maintenance dredging is required to address shoaling and to restore the channel to its authorized depth of 7 feet. The North East River provides access to the Chesapeake Bay and supports approximately 10 marinas, 300 maritime jobs and provides an estimated economic impact of $35 million per year to local maritime commerce.

“This project has been needed for several years and will be an enormous benefit to all those who utilize the river for business and recreation”, said Cecil County Council Vice President Jackie Gregory. “I am grateful to have had the opportunity to be part of what was truly a team effort between the towns of North East and Charlestown, County Government, and Federal officials to make this happen. Thank you to the Cecil County Administration for recognizing this need and bringing together the stakeholders to move this forward.”

Additional details regarding the amounts provided to various programs, projects and activities for fiscal 2022 may be found at: https://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Budget/.

For media inquiries concerning the announced dredging of the North East River, please contact Virginia Smith at vsmith@ccgov.org or 410-996-8324.

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This press release was produced by Cecil County Government. The views expressed here are the author’s own.