Mobile Baykeeper, a coastal environmental group, praised U.S. Senator Katie Britt for her role in securing a $47 million federal appropriation for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to increase the use of dredged sediment from the Mobile Bay shipping channel for projects that benefit the coastal environments.
The Alabama Port Authority announced this week that the Corps is set to receive the additional funds thanks to Britt’s (R-Montgomery) efforts to advance key provisions through the Senate Appropriations Committee – including $47 million for operation and maintenance of the Mobile Ship Channel and a $400,000 study to analyze sediment flow.
The Corps is currently deepening the channel to 50 feet as part of a $366 million project expected to be completed early next year.
“Thank you to Senator Katie Boyd Britt and the Alabama Port Authority for advancing legislation to get the funding needed to stop federal mud dumping in Mobile Bay,” Mobile Baykeeper said on social media. “Now let’s get the Corps to agree to dispose of the dredge responsibly.”
The group has been vocal about the potential environmental impacts of the dredging project. In their message of appreciation for Sen. Britt’s effort, the Baykeeper reiterated hope that the additional funds would enable the Corps to manage dredged sediment the way they prefer.
Despite an ongoing legal challenge against the Corps over the project’s environmental impacts, the funding is a step toward the use of dredged material for “beneficial use” projects, such as wetlands restoration and oyster habitat restoration, which can help mitigate some of the environmental risks they view as being associated with the dredging.
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