CAROLINA BEACH — The Town of Carolina Beach’s lake dredging project that was suspended in August continues to remain on hold, and Town Manager Michael Cramer has issued a formal statement on the issue.
According to Cramer’s statement, the town suspended the lake dredging project in August after the Military Ocean Terminal Sunny Point (MOTSU) objected to the location the town was placing the spoils – on MOTUS property without the proper permit on Aug. 29.
However, documents between SEPI Engineering and Construction, the engineering firm working for the town, and Civil Works Contracting (CWC), the company performing the dredging that show that while CWC was told on Aug. 29 to suspend services, the very next day CWC was told it could continue work.
“We requested that they stop all hauling off the property on the 29th. We requested the contractor dredge a channel to the Driftwood discharge pipes and place the spoils in the coffee dams until hauling could resume,” Cramer said in an email.
The letter saying the company could resume work states, “Civil Works Contracting (CWC) may continue work at the Lake site. The Town has requested that excavation around the stormwater piping at the east end of the lake be attempted and that the spoil material be placed in a temporary coffer dam located in the lake … The suspension of work, hauling and placing new material, at the treatment plant spoil site is still in effect.”
The cost of the delay was also addressed by Cramer in his statement – an issue that still has no clear answer since the town is still in negotiations with the contractor.
“Around Sept. 15, the town received preliminary information from the contractor as to their proposed cost related to suspension. Initially the contractor requested $3,500 per day for rental equipment. As specified in the SEPI letter dated Oct. 20, 2017, the contract does not support the contractor’s request for a change order to the contract,” Cramer said in his statement.
SEPI did preform a cost analysis on the suspension and the contract and decided CWC could be entitled to a payment for the rental of barges for $15,600 as well as costs that will accrue from shipping the barges back, according to Cramer.
This goes against the previous request from CWC to pay for 12 units of equipment being placed on standby for a total of $68,383.27. Negotiations are still taking place and the final cost to the town is not yet known.
What to do with the spoils
Aside from the issue of cost for the delay, another concern is what the town should do with the spoils since MOTSU will not allow the town to continue the disposal.
Earlier this month, the town had been looking to place the remaining spoils on property located off Pleasure Island, but now, that option is off the table.
The town contacted ECS Southeast to conduct a study on the dredge material which, “Indicated that the material was not classified as hazardous waste and that applying the soil on the land would be appropriate,” Cramer said.
Further review of the data revealed that the material would be more suitable for a commercial property, not residential, since there was arsenic found in the soil. While arsenic is a naturally occurring compound, more tests are needed to find the origin of the chemical, Cramer said.
The project is to remain in suspension until further testing is completed, and a new location for the spoils is found. Currently, the town is attempting to work with the U.S. Coast Guard to get access to an old landfill on the north side of Snow’s Cut Bridge that was previously used by the town.
SEPI and CWC correspondence by Michael James on Scribd
Second Soils Report Carolina Beach Lake (1) by Michael James on Scribd
Michael Praats can be reached at [email protected]
