Following a hold on operations earlier this month, dredging at the Whanganui Port is set to re-commence in January 2025, as part of Te Pūwaha, the Whanganui Port revitalization project.
A 40 tonne amphibious excavator, owned and operated by Murphy Civil Limited , is scheduled to create a clear channel from the Wharf Street boat ramp to the awa.
According to the Port, this will improve access for the Whanganui Coastguard and recreational vessels, along with preparing for Q-West Boat Builders to move some of their operations on site next year.
Whanganui Port General Manager, Geoff Evans , said: “ Murphy Civil is the dredging contractor for the Opotiki Harbour Development project, where they are creating a new harbour entrance and closing off the old river channel, so they have considerable experience in river dredging .”
“The amphibious dredge is much bigger than our current dredging operation, and we are expecting that it will move the silt more efficiently. In basic terms, it is a track excavator with large pontoons on either side which allows it to track on both sand and the river bed, and float in deeper waters.”
Whanganui Port said that they will have a representative on site while the dredge is operating, to provide advice to boat operators on safe passage when moving from and to the ramp past the excavator.