Weekly Rhine Channel update for October 17 – 21.

Hi everyone,

This is my weekly Rhine Channel update for October 17 – 21.

·        All was quiet on the jobsite this week now that pile driving is over and dredging is nearly complete.  However, Dutra used this time to perform maintenance on their equipment, and to work on some of the miscellaneous dock repairs that are still outstanding in all of the Phases.  We’re still waiting for some parts to arrive (mostly guide rollers), so that is holding up some of the dock work repairs.  We’ll finalize everyone’s docks in the next couple of weeks.

·        On Tuesday, Dutra started to prepare the American Legion marina for its temporary relocation next door to Marina Park.  Then, on Wednesday, most of the piles were removed, leaving only a couple for stability overnight.  On Thursday, the last of the piles were removed, and the entire marina was floated over and secured.  A very gentle operation, but things worked out smoothly without any hitches.  Good job to the crew for making this happen!

·        On Friday, Dutra picked up the last load of piles from the Rhine Wharf, and dropped off a load of used piles. They also completed some touch up dredging on the Lido Peninsula then moved over to the 15^th Street public pier for dredging in the mid afternoon.  They didn’t quite finish everything, so they’ll resume back at 15^th Street on Monday morning for a short while.  If you have a dinghy at this pier, please have it removed by Monday morning.

·        Also on Monday, Dutra will begin dredging the American Legion marina. This should be a relatively straightforward dredging operation now that the marina is completely removed.  This work may take 3-4 days or so.  Then, after dredging the American Legion, the marina will be floated back into its original position, and new piles will be reinstalled.

·        Most of Phase III is complete, but it’s looking as if we might have to re-dredge a couple pockets in the main channel.  If this is decided, it might take place near the end of next week, or the first part of the following week.

·        Please see the attached figure which shows our progress.  As you can see, most of the red areas are now blue signifying that the dredging is complete.

·        Interesting fact No. 12:  The disposal scows are electronically monitored for their entire trip from Newport Harbor to the Port of Long Beach.  Each scow is equipped with sensors that measure how deep the scow is floating in the water, so the slightest change triggers an alarm. This is important because it warns us if there’s a leak.  Also, there’s a GPS style tracking device that shows the exact path that the scow makes on its way to the Port of Long Beach, so there’s never any question as to exactly where the scow is at all times.  This data is monitored by a 3^rd party as per the permit from the Army Corps of Engineers.

Once again, thank you for hanging with us during this project.  We’ll be done in a few short weeks!

Chris Miller

Harbor Resources Manager

( (949) 644-3043  * cmiller@newportbeachca.gov