Barren Island Dredging Beginning

(DORCHESTER CO, Md) – A major project in the waters of the Chesapeake Bay could impact those sailing around Dorchester County.

It’s being handled by the United States Army Corps of Engineers in the area of Barren Island just south of Hooper’s Island.

The project has been in Phase Two since January of this year, which entails dredging sand and sediment from the nearby Honga River to restore over 70 acres on Barren Island.

We reached out to the Army Corps of Engineers about the need for this dredging project.

“This project enables that material to be beneficially reused and placed at island sites that will then become wetland and upland habitat for our Chesapeake Bay ecosystem…” says the USACE Construction Divisions’ Katie Perkins.

That dredging project is going to cause some trouble for boaters along the Eastern shorelines of the Chesapeake Bay.

As the Army Corps of Engineers is urging them to use caution and avoid Barren Island when out on the Chesapeake. This is due to the increased number of barges that will be in the area of Barren Island. And they’ll be seeing that for some time.

Perkins tells us, “…Through 2027, we’re expecting active construction all around Barren Island and you can see in the Construction Safety Zone graphic that it extends quite far west of Barren Island.”

The dredging area is not blocked off. But the Army Corps of Engineers is encouraging local boaters to enter that water at their own risk.