Cutter suction dredger H.R. Morris departs Channel Islands Harbor

Manson’s cutter suction dredger H.R. Morris departed Channel Islands Harbor recently to begin work on the Ventura Harbor Maintenance Dredging project in Ventura, CA.

According to Manson Construction, this project entails the annual maintenance dredging of federal navigation channels and sand traps within Ventura Harbor.

The dredged material will be placed along South Jetty Beach, a vital area for commercial fishing and a popular destination for both tourists and residents.

The Ventura Harbor entrance channel and sand trap (the area behind the offshore breakwater) require annual maintenance dredging in order to ensure that vessel traffic can safely access the harbor and its maritime support facilities. 

The need for the maintenance dredging results from the down coast movement of an average of about 500,000 cubic yards of sandy material each year which is deposited by littoral processes in the sand trap and entrance channel.

If this material is not dredged and deposited on the down-coast beaches, the harbor entrance can become unsafe for vessel navigation and the beaches are not adequately renourished.