The History, Development and Implementation of the Long Term Management Strategy for the Placement of Dredged Material in the San Francisco Bay Region

In 1989, the San Francisco Bay became "mud locked" over environmental concerns of dredging and dredged material disposal. One of the in-bay disposal sites was physically blockaded by a flotilla of fishing boats and other vessels and dredging in San Francisco Bay was temporary halted. Therefore, in 1990 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers initiated a long-range interagency planning process for dredged material management for the San Francisco Bay. This effort resulted in the Long Term Management Strategy (LTMS) for the Placement of Dredged Material in the San Francisco Bay Region. This Paper presents a history of some of the events leading up to the crisis, the development of the LTMS plan and the actions now being taken to implement this program. It also discusses the importance of consensus building, some of the lessons learned and what has worked best during this process.