Close attention to the environmental impacts of dredging by stakeholders is completely understandable. And yet.
The time, money and energy invested in research and monitoring by the dredging industry is more often than not underestimated. All three articles in the newest issue of Terra et Aqua demonstrate the thorough attention to environmental concerns that occupy a major portion of any dredging operation.
Nothing nowadays goes forward without an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The EIA is then the basis for choosing where, when and how dredging will proceed, what equipment will be used and if the project is in fact feasible at all. No EIA, no permits, no dredging.
During the dredging operation itself continual monitoring takes place. And in most cases, after dredging is completed, surveys are also conducted. As the Terra reader will discover: This is true at the Maasvlakte 2 in the Netherlands and at the Lough Foyle disposal sites in Northern Ireland. It is also true when the industry is developing an innovative type of draghead known as the ‘pilferer’.
Bottom line: Responsible scientific research is the backbone of the dredging industry.
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Press Release, March 13, 2013