Corps says Savannah deepening a $100 million benefit

Corps says Savannah deepening a $100 million benefit    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said a study on proposals to deepen the 35.6-mile shipping channel in the Savannah River to 47 or 48 feet has concluded that the work “can be mitigated to an acceptable level.”
   The Corps said its study found deepening the Harbor will provide more than $100 million annually in net benefits to the nation.
   Release of a draft environmental impact statement to the public and agencies for review and comment “is a significant step forward for the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project and addresses a critical need of our country’s transportation infrastructure,” said Georgia Ports Authority's Executive Director Curtis J. Foltz.
   The Corps said the cost share supported by the federal government and provided by the state of Georgia depends on the depth ultimately selected once all the reviews and coordination are complete. The estimated project cost for the 48-foot alternative, for example, is $551 million with 70 percent supported by the federal government and the remaining 30 percent provided by Georgia.
      The Corps said its draft re-evaluation report identified a 47-foot depth as the tentatively selected “national economic plan,” but that 48 feet was the maximum authorized plan supported by Georgia.
   It said the state requested consideration of the 48-foot depth and agreed to pay 100 percent of the additional costs to dredge and maintain the extra foot. It noted this was similar to an arrangement in 1994 when the state paid for an additional two feet of dredging beyond the Corps' national economic plan.
      Savannah is the fastest growing and fourth largest port by container volume in the nation and second largest on the East Coast.
It was last deepened from 38 feet to 42 feet in 1994, but since then, not only has container traffic increased significantly, but the size of the containerships has increased.
   Savannah Harbor has the shallowest depth of the top 10 U.S. container ports, the Corps said, and it observed that most of the ports on trade routes that include Savannah are deeper than 42 feet, “with the majority at a depth of 50 feet or greater. Harbor improvements, particularly deeper channels, reduce waterborne transportation costs and enhance efficiency in national and international trade.”
   The Georgia Ports Authority said the project is widely supported by Georgia’s state leadership, which has appropriated $105 million in related construction funds to date.
   In addition to the Port of Savannah’s Garden City Terminal, the new channel would pass by the proposed 1,500-acre Jasper County Terminal in South Carolina, which is being planned by a bi-state agency created by Georgia and South Carolina.
   The board overseeing that project met Monday and, according to a report by the Associated Press, a consultant laid out a rough timeline under which the agency might request permits for construction in 2012, receive permission in 2019, and open a first phase in 2025.
   Charleston’s Post and Courier newspaper reported Tuesday that Doug Marchand, who retired as executive director of the Georgia Port Authority in 2009, has been hired as a consultant for the Jasper project. ' Chris Dupin