Crucial countdown begins for dredge project

Hernando Today

HERNANDO BEACH - One month to go.

The county is hoping the state will give the go-ahead to restart Hernando Beach dredge operations by March 1, enough time to finish the project by June 30.

The state has threatened to withhold its matching funds if the $7.7 million project isn't finished in June.

During the next 28 days, the county engineering department must address several dewatering concerns by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP), which sent a letter Jan. 26 to County Engineer Susan Goebel outlining areas that need to be completed before the dredge can continue.

Although FDEP is allowing the county 90 days to answer its concerns, it is in Hernando County's best interests to get these items resolved sooner so the agency can issue the proper permit for the dewatering methods, said Ana Gibbs, external affairs manager with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection,

"The sooner they respond, the sooner we can get this addressed," Gibbs said Monday.

Goebel remains confident she can make the deadline.

"We continue to believe, if we obtain DEP re-approval prior to or on March 1, and the contractor immediately resumes work on that date, then construction should be completed by June," Goebel said in a memo Tuesday.

To date, the dredge project is 6 percent complete, Goebel said.

The state agency is asking for a detailed assessment of how the county plans to remove sediment from the water and whether it has considered installing a pre-filtration system and settling tanks.

FDEP is also asking for a detailed plan for monitoring and adjusting the amount of turbidity (water clarity) in water treatment operations.

Other concerns had to do with the disposal of on-site sludge.

Based on inspections and conversations with the contractors, "there appears to be a higher proportion of fine sediments in the material dredged so far than was originally anticipated," FDEP said in its report.

To that end, the state wants a detailed plan for the disposal of the sludge.