There is also a contract dustpan dredge, the Wallace McGeorge, focusing on deep-draft work and three contract hopper dredges on the Lower Mississippi, with one of those focusing on deep-draft crossings and the other two at Southwest Pass. On the Lower Mississippi, the dustpan dredge Jadwin is at work, along with contract cutters working in Memphis and Vicksburg harbors. The government cutterhead Goetz is among those, along with the dustpan dredges the Hurley and Potter. Of the 17 dredges operating, seven mechanical dredges are on the Upper Mississippi.

This year, Chambers said, the Corps is trying to get ahead by dredging harbors earlier, well before harvest season. Some port captains were reticent to allow dredging last year because that would have caused a temporary shutdown of the harbor while dredging was taking place, and they wanted to get out as many shipments as possible before the low water shut down operations.

“We made sure that we got a couple of extra dredges so we can dredge more harbors at the same time this year so we don’t get behind the power curve.” “The harbors were heavily impacted last year,” he said. There are already 17 dredges operating throughout the system, Chambers said. The Corps is stepping up efforts to combat low water well in advance, he said. On the other hand, this unit will provide you with the means to renew the quality of your waterfront, and the quantity of removed sediment will be limited only by the amount of time & energy that you put in to it.He noted that recent rains have been helpful for the short term, “but in order to get us back in those mean ranges where we’re all comfortable, it’s going to take weeks of rain, based on these drought conditions.” Even expensive industrial dredges can’t do that. The mud is not going to come out of your discharge hose looking like toothpaste. You are also going to have to be prepared to deal with the fact that you will be pumping a lot of water along with the sediment. If you are cleaning a modest area, such as around a dock or boat slip, you can expect to get the job done relatively quickly. These volumes may vary depending upon the nature of your sediment, distance pumped, and your energy & skill level, but many operators state that they are able to pump a much larger volume than our estimates. The excavation capability of our dredger is about 60 cubic meter of water per hour, along 6 cubic meter of sediment per hour. Our suction dredger is particularly effective in removing sand, silt, and that fluffy black stinky mud that ruins the waterfront and prevents one from enjoying beach and water activities.

Small dredge system