Corps of Engineers plans dredging activities near Winona, Minnesota

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, is set to dredge the Mississippi River near Winona, Minnesota, this week.

Corps of Engineers officials said the Corps’ contractor, LS Marine, Inc., from Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, is scheduled to begin dredging the 9-foot navigation channel and placing the material at the Corps’ Homer Placement Site, a few miles south of Winona on U.S. Highway 61.

The Corps anticipates removing around 25,000 cubic yards of river sand from the river during the dredging operation. The material is expected to be reused for a variety of construction projects within the region to include being used as general construction fill material for the roundabout road construction within Winona. An additional beneficial reuse project includes the bridge construction near Marshland, Wisconsin.

Paul Machajewski, St. Paul District dredged material manager, said it’s great to see so many options for the river sand to be reused within the community. “Maintaining the navigation channel is one of the Corps of Engineers’ primary missions,” he said, “but finding opportunities to reuse the material is a benefit that helps reduce storage requirements while reducing the construction costs since the material is free.”

Machajewski said he anticipates dredging activities to last for at least a few weeks and urges boaters to use caution if they are near the dredging activities.

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