State DOT To Dredge A Number Of Channels Near Barnegat Bay Inlet

FORKED RIVER, NJ - The Barnegat Bay Inlet area should be a little easier to navigate once the state Department of Transportation completes an $8.7 million project to dredge channels in off Forked River.

The channels to be dredged include Double Creek Mainland, Double Creek Inlet, High Bar Harbor and Barnegat Light Stake. The Double Creek Inlet channel has been closed and commercial, sailboat and general recreational traffic has been severely limited in other areas since Superstorm Sandy, said DOT spokesman Steven Shapiro.

Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company LLC is already working during the day, seven days a week to install pipeline in or near the channels to prepare for the dredging. The pipeline will pump sediment to the Oyster Creek Confined Disposal Facility and sand to the Barnegat borough beach near Barnegat Lighthouse State Park, he said.

The dredging operations are expected to begin in early October, and will run 24 hours, seven days a week through the end of December, Shapiro said.

Channel use may be limited when the dredge is in operation and when the pipeline is carrying dredge material to the placement locations. Channel closures are not expected, he said.

Boaters should be aware that navigational aids will be removed as needed for the project.

"NJDOT asks that no one approach the pipeline, dredge or any related project equipment under any circumstances,whether or not active dredging operations are observed," Shapiro said.

Pipelines can be difficult to see on the water. Boaters should go through the project zones with caution and observe a "no-wake" speed, he said.

Photo: Courtesy of NOAA