JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The proposed $4.8 trillion federal budget for released by President Donald Trump’s administration Monday has allocated $93 million for the next phase of deepening the Jacksonville Port Authority’s shipping channel.
The four-phase project will deepen the 13-mile shipping channel from 40 to 47 feet from the mouth of the St. Johns River to JaxPort’s Blount Island Marine Terminal.
“This is the first time JaxPort has received funding in the president’s budget, which speaks volumes about the significance of this project to the Southeast U.S. and the nation,” JaxPort CEO Eric Green said in a media release.
Of the total $93 million investment, $57.5 million is included in the FY2020 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Fiscal Year 20 Work Plan, and an additional $35.4 million is allocated in the A Budget for America’s Future – President’s Budget FY 2021.
“This is a significant win for Jacksonville,” Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry said in a release. "As I have said before, the continued support from our state and federal partners demonstrates the strength of JaxPort’s future.
The St. Johns Riverkeeper has filed a federal lawsuit to stop the dredging. The nonprofit environmental watchdog group believes the Army Corps fell short on studying how deepening the river could impact flooding in Jacksonville during major storms. The nonprofit believes that comparing the study the Army Corps did locally to a more in-depth analysis the agency conducted for its Charleston dredging project would show the discrepancy.
The group is also concerned that deepening the river will allow saltwater to move farther upstream and increase sedimentation. An increase in salinity could damage hundreds of acres of wetlands, submerged grasses, and trees in parts of the river and its tributaries, such as Julington Creek and Ortega River.
Contractors for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are scheduled to complete the first 5.5 miles in spring 2020, marking the halfway point for the project.
Harbor deepening began in February 2018 and is anticipated to be completed in 2023, two years ahead of its original schedule, based on continued funding.
The 47-foot depth is required to accommodate more cargo aboard the larger ships calling on JaxPort from destinations throughout Asia and other world markets through both the Panama and Suez canals. Asian container trade is an important part of JaxPort’s container cargo business, which has increased 55 percent in the last five years.
JaxPort is competing to handle cargo from these larger ships with other East Coast ports such as Miami and Savannah, both of which are involved in dredging projects. The president’s budget also included $93 million for deepening Savannah’s shipping channel.
Upon completion of the deepening project, the SSA Jacksonville Container Terminal at Blount Island will include a vessel turning basin and the ability to simultaneously accommodate of the larger vessels that can pass through the upgraded Panama Canal. In November, the U.S Department of Transportation awarded JaxPort a $20 million grant to enable the facility to accommodate more containers on an expanded footprint, according to the JaxPort media release.