A dredging campaign for this year is currently underway as the Dublin Port Company was granted a loading and dumping permit at sea, writes Jehan Ashmore.

Back in September 2016, a Dumping at Sea Permit was issued to DPC by the Environmental Protection Agency. The permit from the EPA allows for the continued loading and dumping at sea of dredged material arising from a capital dredging campaign as part of the Alexandra Basin Redevelopment (ABR) Project.

In addition the ABR includes the ability to accommodate the largest cruise liners based from a proposal to incorporate such new berths.

This day last week a Cruise Consultation was launched by DBC for the views of the public and stakeholders alike to be engaged in the redevelopment among them the proposed cruise-berths located at the North Wall Quay Extension.

Such cruise berths would be sited on the seaward side (as pictured) of the Tom Clarke (East-Link) Bridge. Construction of the berths is scheduled to begin in 2024 and be completed in readiness for the 2026 cruise season.

In the meantime, a Cypriot flagged trailing suction hopper dredger, Freeway,which carried out works in Dublin Bay for last year's campaign, returned last week to the port. Dredging operations are due to be completed by March 2020.

Irish Dredging Co. Ltd., which is a company within the Dutch based Boskalis Group, was the appointed contractor by Dublin Port. This sees Freeway, fourth in a series of 4,500m3 capacity hopper dredgers, carry out such duties between the port and out into Dublin Bay close to the Burford Bank.

Built in 2015 by Shipkits of Groningen, Freeway's design allows for operations conducted in shallow waters, for maintenance tasks within ports in addition coastal protection projects.