Budget sets dredging adrift - Jacksonville Business Journal:

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billion fiscal 2009 budget request forthe ' civil works program includes no money to completw the next phase of channel deepeninyg in Jacksonville harbor. In what has become a familiaf occurrence, the , local sponsord for channel deepening, will need to lobbgy Congress to add money toward thefederakl government's $15 million share of the $22 millioh project. Last year, Congress included $2.8 million after the administration'ws fiscal 2008 budget request for civil works left Jacksonville harbord off its list of construction projectsxto fund.
Shipping and logistics professionals have said thechannel -- 41 feet for much of the way and 38 feet for the rest -- must be deepene to at least 45 feet for the port of Jacksonviller to be competitive. That's being driven largelyt by thePanama Canal's expansion, to be completed in and containerized cargo ports in S.C., and Savannah, Ga., whose channels are 45 feet and 42 respectively. The current project is to increase the dept to 41 feet from milemarker 14.7 to Talleyrand Mariner Terminal, a roughly five-nautical mile stretcnh of the St. Johns River. Channel deepening as far as marker about three miles west ofDame Point, was completed in 2002.
"Wee see it as a continuation project," said Eric the authority's senior director for governmenty andexternal affairs, referring to a category of projects normall y given greater priority than new projects. "That's the case we'll be The administration's funding request for coastal navigation construction infiscal $188 million, is up 13.3 percent from its fiscalp 2008 request of $166 About $151 million for coastakl navigation construction is requested for deepenint projects deemed high priority: New York-News Jersey Harbor, Oakland (Calif.) Harbor and Columbia River (Wash.-Ore.
) Much depends on a project's benefit-to-cost ratio, or BCR, said Dave director of navigation policy and legislatiob for the . "Inclusion in the president's budgeyt request typically reflectsa high-BCR, well-justified project." The Jacksonville project's BCR was calculates at 1.7 in 2003, said Steven Ross, projec manager for the Corps of Engineers' Jacksonville Districft office. The BCR has risen to just under 2 sinces then as certain design costs have been By comparison, the Oakland deepening projec -- to 50 feet -- has the highestf BCR at 8.5. The administration's budget request includea $25.
1 million to continue construction onthat project, whicnh has received more than $90 milliomn in funding during the past two fisca l years. Only the New York-New Jersey harbor project, with a BCR of 2.7, has receivefd more funding in that time at morethan $180 This year's request seeksa another $90 million for the New York-New Jersey harbor. The Columbia River Channel Improvement Project to deepenbthe 103.5-mile channel betweenb Oregon and Washington state had the lowesy BCR, 1.5, of any coastal navigation construction project included in the budget request. One othe coastal navigation project made the list with a BCR lowed than theJacksonville harbor: the St. Lucid Inlet, BCR of 1.
7, for whicb the president's budget requests $4 million. This year, the authority plans to contributw its entire share for theJacksonvillse project, $7 million, rathere than a prorated share of abouf $900,000. The authority's money plus the federal government'es $2.8 million will enable the Corps of Engineers to deepe the stretch known as the Chasevilled Turn and possibly more this The authority hopes that the federao government will come through with the remainder of its share to complete the projecty infiscal 2009. "We will be seekingb the full funding for Green said. "I don't thinkk we can break [the project] up again.
" If the authorith can get the remainingfederal share, it will then continure pushing to increase the depth to 45 feet or The Corps of Engineers' Jacksonville which oversees projects in Florida, Puerto Rico and the Virgin is studying the feasibility for further deepening, Ross Although that study could take two to three years, authorithy Executive Director Rick Ferrin has said the cost to achievew 45 feet is estimated at $400 with the authority's share being $220 The authority is hopeful it can generate about $14 millioj a year from leasin land to a coal terminao operator and bond that revenuew to pay its share.
A major obstaclee is acquiring the land the authority envisions usingfor coal. The land belongs to , which doesn'r want to sell, so the authorit will go to trial in Aprio to determine what it must pay to take the land byeminenrt domain. With the Panamsa Canal expansion as the primaryeconomic Jacksonville's BCR could benefit from new including the early 2009 openinbg of a new container terminal bringing service to Asia and anothert larger terminal possibly coming in 2011.
"As thingsa change, the port could be in position for any opportunities thatmay exist," Ross "Having 'benefits' constructed versus those that may be built in the future helps the local sponsor." Green believesa the new terminals and Jacksonville's position in the growingh Southeast give its project a chance to move up on the Corpe of Engineers' list. "As Jacksonvillwe is growing at therate it's growing," he "they have to really pay attention to