Comments Sought On Corpus Christi Channel Deepening Project

The Galveston Engineer District is inviting public comments on the Port of Corpus Christi Authority’s Channel Deepening Project Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS).

The PCCA Channel Deepening Project is located near Port Aransas and Nueces and Aransas counties in Texas. The proposed action would deepen the existing channel from its currently authorized depth of 54 feet to 77 feet and extend the existing offshore channel limits an additional 29,000 feet into the Gulf of Mexico.

The project channel alignment is within the existing channel bottom of the Corpus Christi Ship Channel, starting near the southeast side of Harbor Island, and traverses easterly through Aransas Pass. It extends beyond the currently authorized terminus. The proposed action would span approximately 13.8 miles from Harbor Island to the Gulf of Mexico, generating approximately 47 million cubic yards of new-work dredge material.

The port has proposed to use suitable dredged material for beneficial use by constructing nearshore berms and beach nourishment on San Jose and Mustang Islands, as well as restore eroded shorelines on Harbor Island and near the Port Aransas Nature Preserve impacted by Hurricane Harvey. Dredged material determined not to be suitable for beneficial use will be placed in the Corpus Christi New Work Ocean Dredge Material Disposal Site located offshore Corpus Christi.

Comments on the FEIS are due by April 21. Electronic comments (email) regarding the FEIS should be addressed to SWG201900067@usace.army.mil. Emailed comments, including attachments, should be provided in .docx, .jpeg, or .pdf formats.

The FEIS is available on the district’s project webpage at: www.swg.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory/Special-Projects-Environmental-Impact-Statements.aspx.

For more information, contact Carlos Gomez at 409-766-3004 or email carlos.m.gomez@usace.army.mil.