Beneficial Reuse of Dredge Spoils from Squalicum Harbor

The Port of Bellingham performed maintenance dredging and replacement of Docks F and G at its Squalicum Harbor facility in Bellingham, Washington, in 2012. Approximately 47,500 cubic yards (36,300 cubic meters) of accumulated sediment in the dock and channel areas of the harbor were dredged. The sediment was tested and deemed unsuitable for open-water disposal in Puget Sound due to dioxin concentrations that exceeded the disposal guidelines. As an alternative to disposing of the material in an operating landfill, the material was beneficially utilized as a component of a capping system over a former landfill. The dredged sediment was barged from the marina site to a transfer site where it was offloaded and conditioned to remove excess water using a pug mill operation. The conditioned material was then hauled and placed on the landfill site for use as a component of the permanent landfill cover. The beneficial reuse of the dredged sediments was successful in reducing costs and environmental impacts associated with hauling the material to an operating landfill and contributing to the remediation process for a closed landfill.