Dredge project would support navigation channel

A project to reuse the dredge material from the bottom of the Black River means the Port of Lorain could remain open to large shipping freighters for the next 30 years, according to plans.

On Dec. 4, state Sen. Gayle Manning announced the Ohio State Controlling Board approved of $9.9 million in capital funds for three dredge material reuse projects, including in Lorain.

The city will get $4 million to plan, design, obtain permits and build a new Black River Dredge Reuse Facility that will be located on a 30-acre site within a larger reclamation facility owned by the city.

“We’re excited about the opportunity,” said Kathryn Golden, storm water manager in the city of Lorain’s Engineering Department.

The project is a step in the evolution of Lake Erie water quality rules and programs

overseen by state regulators.

The Black River and other northern Ohio rivers periodically are dredged to maintain the needed depth for the federally regulated navigation channels that freighters use when they dock and load or unload in the cities.

In the past, the dug-out material was dumped in the open waters of Lake Erie, but that practice will end in 2020, Golden said.

“So, if we can’t place this dredge material in the lake anymore because of the environmental effects of that material, we need to develop alternate locations,” she said.

Cleveland and Toledo already have developed sites for the movement of the dredge material, Golden said.

Placement of material In Lorain, the material would be placed in a 30acre area known as the RTI site, which is land the city controls between the steel mills on East 28th Street and the Black River.

The dredge sediment facility would sit near the area that has the great blue heron rookery on the Black River.

However, the facility would not harm the rookery or disrupt ecological restoration areas along the river banks, Golden said.

“It’s actually a very good use for a portion of a parcel of land that otherwise may not be developable because of lack of utilities,” she said.

The parcel was slated for industrial use, but does not have water, sewer and electrical connections immediately available, Golden said.

The dredge material would be dried and mixed with other soil or minerals for possible use as topsoil or construction, she said.

A preliminary plan is to have about 20 acres available for drying the material and 10 acres for final product development, Golden