Well I Asked For It

[Turbo21835]

Since I asked for this new section Ill add to it. My first addition is of Clyde. A clam crane dredging the river here. They are getting ready for the vacuum dredge. Clyde is going through the river taking out the sand bars and any obstructions. They take the sand bars out so the vacuum dredge is more efficient. All this work is extremely important for the area. A majority of our stone comes into this area on lake freighters. The river was dredged 10 years ago, with a depth of 26ft. With lower water levels, and silting of the navigation channels we now have depth of 16 feet. This means a large decline in payload each ship can bring in.

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/016.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/017.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/018.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/019.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/020.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/021.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/022.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/023.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/051.jpg

[Lashlander]

Nice pics! I'm a little confused on why they are pre dredging? Any suction dredge I've seen loves sand bars. A big rock now and then doesn't bother them. They just dig a hole beside it until it rolls in. Sunken trees or cars? I'm just thinking out loud.:confused:

[Turbo21835]

Suction dredge. The suction dredge they are going to run around here is more like a scraper. They like to run long smooth cuts. They are two tubes mounted on the side of a ship. They have a suction head on the end of the tube. It works like your vacuum cleaner at the house. Everything is sucked up and transfered to a hold in the ship. The run along at about 5mph. Apparently this is the most efficient method for the river? So the reason they knock out the bars and trees is so the ship does not have to stop. The ship will then head to where they dump the spoils. Its piped from the ship hold to a landfill area. This area was just built. The site is surrounded by 12ft high berms. The spoils will be piped into this area and allowed to dry. This will be the permanent site for the material.

[Turbo21835]

I should also add. The areas of the sand bars are around bridges. These are draw bridges. Its not an area you want a ship sitting in trying to work material. People already complain when a laker comes through and they have to sit for 5 minutes while the bridge is open.

[Willis Bushogin]

Suction dredge. The suction dredge they are going to run around here is more like a scraper. They like to run long smooth cuts. They are two tubes mounted on the side of a ship. They have a suction head on the end of the tube. It works like your vacuum cleaner at the house. Everything is sucked up and transfered to a hold in the ship. The run along at about 5mph. Apparently this is the most efficient method for the river? So the reason they knock out the bars and trees is so the ship does not have to stop. The ship will then head to where they dump the spoils. Its piped from the ship hold to a landfill area. This area was just built. The site is surrounded by 12ft high berms. The spoils will be piped into this area and allowed to dry. This will be the permanent site for the material.
The correct name for this dredge, is a Hopper dredge, most of these can pump to a land site or go out to sea and bottom dump everything. I just retired from one of the largest dredging companies in the US. I was a Licensed Captain. This work was real amazing, even after 20 years, you load all the info in the computer and almost everything is automatic.
Just my 2 cents worth

[portcityrigging]

Since I asked for this new section Ill add to it. My first addition is of Clyde. A clam crane dredging the river here. They are getting ready for the vacuum dredge. Clyde is going through the river taking out the sand bars and any obstructions. They take the sand bars out so the vacuum dredge is more efficient. All this work is extremely important for the area. A majority of our stone comes into this area on lake freighters. The river was dredged 10 years ago, with a depth of 26ft. With lower water levels, and silting of the navigation channels we now have depth of 16 feet. This means a large decline in payload each ship can bring in.

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/016.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/017.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/018.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/019.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/020.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/021.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/022.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/023.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/051.jpg

Is Clyde a NW or Mani ? Or other ? Just curious. Nice pics Turbo !!:drinkup

[surfer-joe]

If the river is the Saginaw, then it's full of old trees from the logging days and Dioxin and other chemicals from the Dow Chemical plant upstream. Suction dredges are not crazy about the trees it seems.

The levels of Dioxin (think Agent Orange) recently found in roughly six pockets along the river are many times the allowable federal limits, this despite several clean up efforts in the past. The river has also been cleared of logs many times in the past, but somehow they keep popping up.

From Saginaw downriver to Bay City and Saginaw Bay the river bed is also full of heavy oil and metallic deposits from numerous manufacturing facilities that sprung up in the area. I've watched numerous freighters deliver loads of stone, gravel, various ores and salt to terminals in and below Saginaw. The ships propellers really stir up the bottom, particularly when they come in full.

There are several other smaller rivers that feed into the Saginaw, these drain basically the entire center of Michigan and these streams are heavily polluted as well. Most are now much better than they were years ago with the closing of many chemical plants and refineries and with the addition of anti-pollution and dumping laws since about 1970.

Two rivers in this system I can think of also have natural underground salt seeps that contribute salt and other minerals into the water. Let's just say you do not want to swim in or drink the water……

Lots of history along and in Michigan's rivers.

[Buckethead]

Portcity, Clyde is a Clyde Whirley. Hope this helps!

[portcityrigging]

Portcity, Clyde is a Clyde Whirley. Hope this helps!
Thanks Buckethead. The rig looks like an old Northwest from the 60's.

Thanks again.

Manitowoc 3900W S-2, 4000 W, 4100 S-3
American 998, 5299, 7460
tower and luffing , max. cap. lifts, piling, bucket work

28 years
VICON LOVER

IUOE 382- Little Rock , Arkansas

[dieseldave]

Suction dredge. The suction dredge they are going to run around here is more like a scraper. They like to run long smooth cuts. They are two tubes mounted on the side of a ship. They have a suction head on the end of the tube. It works like your vacuum cleaner at the house. Everything is sucked up and transfered to a hold in the ship. The run along at about 5mph. Apparently this is the most efficient method for the river? So the reason they knock out the bars and trees is so the ship does not have to stop. The ship will then head to where they dump the spoils. Its piped from the ship hold to a landfill area. This area was just built. The site is surrounded by 12ft high berms. The spoils will be piped into this area and allowed to dry. This will be the permanent site for the material.

I work a those sort of sites (the Corps calls them "spoils disposal areas"), building those 12' berms in NJ, PA and DE. Here are a few pics from over the years. I had some of the Corps' hopper dredge, the "McFarland" but I can't locate them at the moment :bash

[Turbo21835]

Sorry for the laps in time. I was finally able to find information about the current project. The current contractor is Luedtke Engineering. http://luedtke-eng.com/
The next section, Upper Saginaw river is going to be dredged next year. The contractor is supposed to be MCM Marine. http://www.mcmmarine.com/MCM.htm

[BigIron25]

Since I asked for this new section Ill add to it. My first addition is of Clyde. A clam crane dredging the river here. They are getting ready for the vacuum dredge. Clyde is going through the river taking out the sand bars and any obstructions. They take the sand bars out so the vacuum dredge is more efficient. All this work is extremely important for the area. A majority of our stone comes into this area on lake freighters. The river was dredged 10 years ago, with a depth of 26ft. With lower water levels, and silting of the navigation channels we now have depth of 16 feet. This means a large decline in payload each ship can bring in.

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/016.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/017.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/018.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/019.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/020.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/021.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/022.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/023.jpg
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d30/turbo21835/051.jpg

Where abouts in Michigan are you from? :usa

[Turbo21835]

Just a stones throw away from the Saginaw River. About two miles from 1-75. Ive called Saginaw Home for many years, with the exception of being on the road from time to time.

[BigIron25]

Just a stones throw away from the Saginaw River. About two miles from 1-75. Ive called Saginaw Home for many years, with the exception of being on the road from time to time.

Saginaws nice, ive been up there a time or two. I grew up in the South Haven and Marshall areas down south.