as a portland native, i do not approve of dredging up awful memories.

JAN 1988 e [Department Maine State Planning Of flice PROGRESS REPORT November 1987 tbrough January 1988 Officials will need to make another request for federal funding in July.Maine's Coastal Program submitted to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Office of Ocean & Coastal Resource Management The Maine Department of Environmental Protection has issued a permit for dredging on both sides of the Fore River and the final permit for dredging from the Army Corps of Engineers is expected next month.

The material dredged to create the CAD cell is considered clean and can be disposed of at a site in federal waters about six miles off the coast of Cape Elizabeth.

A CAD cell is a deep hole that would be dredged into the harbor to provide a permanent site for the contaminated dredged material. If funding for dredging is approved, officials will need to identify somewhere to dispose of the dredged material, which is often polluted with runoff from roads and rooftops along with contaminants from industry. “Receiving the CAD cell permits from the Army Corps of Engineers and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) positions both cities to receive the funding needed to move forward.” We don’t have a choice,” Jennings said in a statement Thursday. The most recent bid for federal funding was denied last fall. Portland, South Portland and wharf owners would also pay part of the cost, but the bulk of the money would come from the federal government. Portland City Manager Jon Jennings said having approval for a CAD cell might improve the city’s prospects for federal funding to help with the estimated cost of $30 million for harbor dredging. He also said some space that was intended for use by large vessels can now be used only by smaller boats because of reduced water depths. Needleman said about 3,000 linear feet of commercial berthing space in the city’s central waterfront area is unusable due to sediment buildup. “Commercial vessels want to be in protected water and that’s where sedimentation is the most rapid.” “We’re losing the best berths in the harbor,” Bill Needelman, Portland’s waterfront coordinator, said in a statement. Officials said sediment has been building up in the harbor, costing both cities berthing spaces. Portland, South Portland, the Portland Harbor Commission and the state have been lobbying for years to get the harbor dredged.

As a portland native, i do not approve of dredging up awful memories.