With the stroke of a presidential pen Tuesday, 15 years of delays, frustration and waiting came to an end as the Savannah Harbor Deepening Project finally got the official green light.
The signing of the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014 authorizes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to begin dredging to deepen the Savannah River channel to a depth of 47 feet at mean low tide.
Mentioning Savannah by name, President Barack Obama said the nation’s major ports must be ready to handle the larger ships that are moving more and more of the world’s cargo.
“This bill will create jobs and strengthen our national infrastructure,” Obama said. “It will allow the deepening of the harbors.”
The Port of Savannah received a congressional OK to deepen in 1999, but extensive studies, bureaucratic delays and lawsuits stalled the project and brought projected costs well beyond those originally authorized.
The 2014 WRRDA contains language that OKs the project at its current estimated cost of $706 million.
“This project is the result of an open and collaborative process involving all interested stakeholders and which received the approval of multiple regulatory agencies,” said Georgia Ports Authority Executive Director Curtis Foltz.
“We would like to thank the administration, our elected officials throughout Georgia and Washington, Gov. (Nathan) Deal and all who worked tirelessly to reach this critical milestone.”
Foltz said the next step calls for Georgia to enter into a Project Partnership Agreement with the Corps of Engineers, defining how the costs of the project will be shared between the state and federal government, That agreement, which will accelerate use of Georgia’s portion of the funding, should come within 90 days, he said.
“In addition to getting a finished PPA signed, the corps has a process and a time frame for putting construction projects out for bids,” he said.
“I think we can realistically expect to have a dredge in the water by the end of the year.”
Russell Wicke, spokesman for the Corps’ Savannah district, agreed, conditionally.
Col. Thomas Tickner, the Corps’ Savannah District commander, wasn’t available for comment Tuesday.
Protecting the environment
Wicke said the earliest the corp could expect to begin construction is December of this year, adding that several environmental windows are in place to minimize impacts to different parts of the environment.
“For example, there is a window that prohibits hopper dredges from dredging the entrance channel during much of the year to protect sea turtles,” he said. “The entrance channel is the first place we will begin dredging, and our window for using a Hopper dredge there is limited to Dec. 1 through March 31.”
Wicke said that wouldn’t prevent other kinds of dredges from working to deepen the entrance channel during the rest of the year.
“However, the district stands ready to execute the Savannah Harbor Deepening Project once given approval to proceed from the Office of Management and Budget, and the assistant secretary of the army for civil works,” Wicke said.
Meanwhile, Foltz said, it’s extremely satisfying to put the study and authorization phase in the rear-view mirror and look forward to beginning the new phase of construction.
“Our customers deserve the economies of scale that come with a project that will provide a 5:1 benefit-to-cost ratio for the entire nation,” he said.
“We have loyal customers who never considered looking elsewhere, and I think that’s because — while deepening has always been of critical importance — it’s only a part of their decisions to do business with us,” he said.
“Our customers tell us they appreciate the scale of our container port, which is the largest on the East Coast. Having nearly 10,000 feet of uninterrupted berthing makes it easier to get in, unload, load and get out.
“They also value our continuing investment in modern equipment and technology, as well as our road and rail access points,” he said.
Federal studies show that for every dollar invested in the deepening, the nation’s economy will reap $5.50 in net benefits. Lower prices per container slot on Post-Panamax vessels will save U.S. companies moving goods through Savannah 20 to 40 percent on transportation, he said.
“Port users can realize further savings on land transit because of the terminal’s adjacent network of distribution centers and its location 100 miles closer to Atlanta than any other port,” Foltz said.
“Candidly, most other container ports can’t compare.”
Jepson: State saw need
GPA Board Chairman Robert Jepson agreed, adding that seeing the port deepening through to final authorization has been a top priority during his two years leading the board.
“The harbor deepening is recognized across Georgia as the state’s most important infrastructure project in terms of future economic development,” Jepson said. “Because Gov. Nathan Deal and the General Assembly had the foresight to set aside $266 million toward construction, we will be able to start the project this year using state funds.”
U.S. Sens. Johnny Isakson and Saxby Chambliss and U.S. Rep Jack Kingston, all Georgia Republicans, praised the bill’s passage and urged the corps to move forward as quickly as possible, while state Sen. Jason Carter, a Democrat, praised the delegation for “breaking through the partisan gridlock in Washington to hold the federal government accountable to its commitment to Georgia.”
Despite the frustration ports officials have experienced at the agonizingly slow process, Foltz said he never seriously worried about customers heading elsewhere as long as the project was at least inching forward.
“We’ve told our customers all along that we would get the river deepened and they have come to know we make good on our promises,” he said.
“They know we are a long-term player committed to long-term solutions.”