LAMA’s report on the Corps’ Mississippi River Maintenance Forum meeting held this morning, Wednesday, November 6, 2019 and the corresponding agenda are attached.
The graph below is reproduced from NOAA’s National Weather Service website and represents an experimental product to account for the complexity of accurately predicting long-range precipitation. This forecast projects stage levels based on expected precipitation for 2 days (top) and 16 days (bottom) and was developed within the North American Ensemble Forecast System (NAEFS) computer model and highlights Quantitative Precipitation Forecasts (QPF). Along with the forecasts, a shaded area is also provided to indicate uncertainty for the forecast each day in the future. These plots are experimental and not an official forecast product.
RE: CORPS’ MISSISSIPPI RIVER MAINTENANCE FORUM MEETING NOTES
LAMA Corps Mississippi River Maintenance Forum Meeting Notes 11619.pdf
The Corps’ Mississippi Valley New Orleans (MVN) holds monthly meetings to discuss channel conditions and related issues directly with the maritime industry. These meetings are usually scheduled for 0900 hours on the first Wednesday of the month. LAMA encourages our members to attend these meetings, which are open to the public (with advanced notice of attendance provided to MVN). The agenda for this meeting as provided by the MVN is attached.
Maintenance Forum Notes November 6, 2019
1) Introductions
2) Southeast Waterways Update:
Tiger Pass: The MVN advertised a bid opening on September 23, 2019 for a cutterhead dredge to restore channel dimensions on Tiger Pass. Three bids were received but all of them were substantially over the awardable limit (more than 25% over the Government Estimate) and could not be rewarded. The MVN now plans to try and combine the dredging contract with a Beneficial Use of Dredged Material (BUDMAT) project and expects to re-advertise this combined contract in May 2020. The MVN originally believed the funding would be sufficient to restore the channel to reduced dimensions of 12 feet throughout by removing approximately 1.9 million cubic yards (mcy) of sediment. The BUDMAT approach should increase the cubic yardage to be removed, but a contract must be awarded.
Baptiste Collette: The Corps previously received $13.9 million in supplemental funding to perform dredging operations ($6.5 million) and rock work to fortify the jetties and channel boundaries ($7.4 million) of Baptiste Collette. The MVN also received an additional $3 million from the Corps FY 19 Work Plan. The cutterhead dredge CROSBY DREDGER (Crosby Dredging) began dredging on July 29, 2019 and has been actively dredge for 101 days. The contract was expected to be completed in early December (2019) but a revised date of completion is now mid-February 2020. The MVN confirmed that the rock work contract was awarded to TKTMJ Incorporated. The contractor has indicated challenges securing the rock for the project and the work is not expected to start until early 2020.
3) Mississippi River Conditions Update:
Current Stage New Orleans (Carrollton Gauge): 10.23 feet
• Projections indicate a rise to 10.5 feet by November 8th and to remain steady before beginning to fall.
Current Stage Baton Rouge: 28.1 feet (Check River Gages later)
• Projections indicate a rise to 28.6 feet by November 13th and to remain steady before beginning to fall.
A. Crossings Between Baton Rouge and New Orleans:
The latest surveys for the Crossings Between Baton and New Orleans are included in the attached agenda. The surveys identify considerable shoaling on the Crossings. The MVN is actively dredging with all three dustpan dredges: HURLEY, JADWIN and WALLACE McGEORGE.
B. New Orleans Harbor:
The industry cutterhead dredge CAPTAIN FRANK completed the assignment in the New Orleans Harbor on October 2, 2019.
C. Southwest Pass (SWP):
The MVN continues working deficient areas of SWP with the newly christened cutterhead dredge J.S. CHATRY and the industry hopper dredge NEWPORT. The J.S. CHATRY is dredging on assignment from Mile 2.3 AHP to Mile 1.8 AHP on the western side of the channel. The cutterhead is expected to complete the Ship Channel assignments and return to the Hopper Dredge Disposal Area by November 23, 2019. The NEWPORT is presently working from Mile 5.0 AHP to Mile 4.3 AHP on the eastern side of the channel. The NEWPORT is under contract with MVN until approximately November 18, 2019.
The MVN held a bid opening for a hopper dredge contract (Southwest Pass Hopper Dredge Rental Contract #13-19) on November 5, 2019 for dredging to begin dredging in March 2020. There were two bids received but neither could be awarded because they were both greater than 25% over the Government Estimate.
The MVN will hold a bid opening for the Gulf Coast Regional Hopper Dredge Contract FY 2020 (19B0027) on November 20, 2019 for dredging to start in February 2020. The Regional Contract is a new approach and would allow the hopper dredge to work on assignments at the Mississippi River Ship Channel and the Gulfport Harbor Bar Channel.
D. Head of Passes, Hopper Dredge Disposal Area (HDDA):
The R.S. WEEKS and other cutterhead dredges have removed approximately 10 mcy of material from the HDDA all material is being beneficially placed in the Pass A’Loutre Wildlife Management Area (PALWMA). An increase in funding was utilized to extend this contract and increase the amount of material to be removed from 12.0 mcy to 15.075 mcy. The project will eventually restore approximately1,200 acres in the PALWMA. The J.S. CHATRY is expected to begin work on the HDDA project after completing the work on the Ship Channel.
E. Southwest Pass Stone Foreshore Dike & Jetty Repair:
A contract was awarded to EFT Diversified, Inc. on July 16, 2018 to make repairs to the foreshore rocks that protect the deep-draft channel in Southwest Pass. The rock placement operations were completed on October 5, 2019.
4) Next Meeting:
The next Forum meeting is scheduled for 0900 hours on Wednesday, December 4, 2019, at the MVN District Assembly Room A.
