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Navigation and CPRA presenters outline plan to restore Bird’s Foot Delta hydrology and dredge Powlettown Anchorage
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Summary
Navigation representatives and CPRA staff described a multi‑agency effort to restore flows into the Bird’s Foot Delta, proposed dredging in South Pass and Pass a Loutre, and a targeted dredge of the Powlettown Anchorage to improve navigation and generate material for beneficial use and marsh restoration.
Navigation industry representatives and CPRA technical staff presented a coordinated concept to improve hydrology and beneficially use dredged sediment in the Bird’s Foot Delta and adjacent areas.
Speakers warned that the Powlettown Anchorage is severely shoaled and said its condition presents the highest single‑point navigation risk in the lower river; they described historic events in which grounded vessels closed the channel for extended periods. Navigation stakeholders and CPRA staff urged federal funding to dredge the anchorage, estimating as much as 30,000,000 cubic yards of material would be needed to restore the full anchorage to design depth and noting that material removed could create thousands of acres of marsh if placed beneficially.
Rudy Seminole, CPRA chief of engineering, and Todd Baker, CPRA project manager, described six river sand source areas and an established program that has used Mississippi River dredging to create marsh at multiple sites. CPRA said prior projects using cutterhead dredges and hopper beneficial use have created thousands of acres of marsh and highlighted the long‑term value of combining navigation maintenance with habitat restoration.
On a proposed Bird’s Foot Delta restoration project (Pass‑reopening concept), CPRA said it has developed a modeling framework of the lower river, considered multiple alternatives and identified a preferred alternative that would dredge South Pass and re‑open Pass a Loutre (the preferred alternative described dredge templates such as South Pass at 300‑foot width by 25‑foot depth and other reaches at 500–750 feet and depths of 20–25 feet). CPRA presented a planning‑level cost estimate in the transcript of about $165,000,000 (range $145–176 million) for the preferred alternative and said the plan targets construction funding around 2028.
CPRA and navigation speakers said the project could both restore sediment and freshwater to east‑side marshes and reduce dredging need over time by restoring more natural flows. They also said surveys, archaeological reviews and mapping of old infrastructure and pipelines remain to be completed as part of design and permitting.
Board members asked about longevity and re‑infilling of anchorages; CPRA staff said refill rates vary but estimated some borrow pits can re‑fill in three to five years after dredging, and that restoring hydrology would extend project life and reduce future maintenance needs.
CPRA intends to continue design, stakeholder engagement and further model runs to produce more precise acre‑for‑dollar benefit outputs and to pursue federal appropriations to implement the work.
