BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE MYSTIC RIVER DREDGING PROJECT

     Submitted by Karin Whittemore

I am sure many of you were aware of the Mystic River Dredging Project which was recently completed. Some of you could literally hear the work from your homes, both day and night, as the work proceeded non-stop, 24 hours a day.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began the job in earnest in December and finished ahead of schedule on January 29. They restored the channels and anchorage area in the Mystic Harbor to their authorized depths, an endeavor that was last attempted in the 12-foot channel near the Mystic Seaport in 1941 and, in other areas, in 1957*.

The winning bid of just a little over 5 million was awarded to Cashman Dredging and Marine Contracting Company, LLC, of Quincy, Mass. They are a very successful company which I have learned a little bit about.

Over the past 42 years, Cashman has completed some of the most challenging and significant construction projects in North America: from the deepest soil-mixing project ever performed to the largest environmental dredging project in U.S. history.  It is one of the largest and most experienced dredging companies in the country and their track record of professionalism, quality, and an unwavering commitment to safety has allowed them to take on some of the most challenging projects in U.S. History.

Peter and I had been watching this dredging project on the Mystic River since mid-October.  Our eyes had been focused on this continuous project situated off of the Noank shipyard.  I was curious to know more about the people who were out there on often cold, windy nights, working what seemed like 24 hours a day.  So I walked myself into the temporary Cashman office on Cottrell Street and had an interesting conversation with four men who were willing to talk to me, and I hope it will interest you all as well.

Cashman has done many dredging projects from Portland, Maine down to the Florida Coast.  Our Mystic River project required 20 managers and 45 crew.  They came from all over; the furthest being from Texas and Florida. Some local guys, who had heard about the project and wanted to be involved, were also hired.  Union 25 oversaw the project. 

Overall, there were 6 dredgers on the river. The guys worked 20 days on and 10 days off 24/7.  Shifts usually went from 6-6 but sometimes from 12-12 upon request. They rented out three houses in Groton Long Point for the crew. The only time that Cashman shut down during this entire project was 48 hours over Christmas so that the crew could spend time with their families.

The Mystic River was last dredged in the 1950's.  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers oversaw this project.  There were three disposal sites in CT. that were EPA approved for the dumping, although they like to refer to it as disposing.  One site was off of New London, another off of New Haven and the last in Western Long Island Sound off of Stamford, which was used the least.  160,000 yards of material in 1000-yard chunks were taken to these disposal sites.  120 barge loads total!  This project was heavily permitted. The permitting process can often take up to 3-5 years for approval.  

Besides the houses on GLP, there were many who lived on the tugs.  And everyone was responsible for feeding themselves, as there were no cooks on board. Everyone ate in town a lot, as it was the highlight of their day.  They all said that they hoped they had given Mystic restaurants a 'shot in the arm' during this quieter season.  They felt that Mystic was not only great but a very friendly, supportive community.  Nicole from World of Bagels was particularly friendly giving them a 10% discount. She was willing to cook for them when she was closed for renovations in January if they gave her their order the day before.

 One woman flagged them down off Noank Shipyard.   They went to see what she wanted and she had baked a whole box of cookies for the crew as she, too, had been watching them work night and day.

The crew related that the Mystic bridge guys were great to work with.  When they were above the bridge, the bridge needed to be opened up to 12 times a day.  The Railroad bridge guys were not as agreeable but they managed to make it work.

The last weekend in January, Peter and I were sadly watching them gather their equipment and gear and getting ready to ship on out.  They departed on Monday, January 2.  My real sadness is that I wished I had gone into that office earlier than their last week, introduced myself and baked this nice, hard working crew cookies as well.

*The following details the work areas completed in the dredging project:

• A 15-foot channel, 125 feet from Fishers Island Sound north of the railroad bridge, then 100 feet wide up to the Rt. 1 highway bridge.
• A 12-foot channel from Rt. 1 to the upper wharves at the Seaport.
• A 9-foot by 8.5 acre anchorage in the harbor north of Masons Island.
• A 9-foot turning basin above the railroad bridge.

CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT

There are bird counts at various times of the year done by many different groups.   The Christmas Bird Count done on Mason's Island includes a former property owner, Ruth Waller, who shared the following report.    For more information about Christmas Bird Counts, read it here:  History of the Christmas Bird Count

Here are the totals for the count made on Mason's Island on January 3. Four birders were on the island from 7:15 to 3:00.  Temperature ranged from 27 to 32 degrees. Wind was out of the west from 5 to 15 MPH.  Morning was partly sunny, clouds rolled in by noon and by 2:45 it had begun to snow.

COMMON LOON                    6
HORNED GREBE                   6
RED-NECKED GREBE            2
GREAT CORMORANT             1
DOUBLE-CRESTED CORM.     2
GREAT BLUE HERON             2
CANADA GOOSE                  76
BRANT                                  52
BLACK DUCK                        31
MALLARD                              59
GADWALL                               1
LESSER SCAUP                      4
LONG-TAILED DUCK                6
COMMON EIDER                    70
SURF SCOTER                        7
COMMON GOLDENEYE          10
BUFFLEHEAD                       195
HOODED MERGANSER          59
RED-BR. MERGANSER           57
TURKEY VULTURE                   3
NORTHERN HARRIER               1
COOPER'S HAWK                    4
RED-SHOULDERED HAWK       1
RED-TAILED HAWK                  4
WILD TURKEY                          1
PURPLE SANDPIPER               2
GREAT BLACK-BACK GULL      9
HERRING GULL                       59
RING-BILLED GULL                   4
ROCK DOVE                           42
MOURNING DOVE                   23
COMMON FLICKER                   7
YELLOW-BEL SAPSUCKER      1
RED-BEL WOODPECKER        11
DOWNY WOODPECKER          34
HAIRY WOODPECKER              1
BLUE JAY                                60
COMMON CROW                     56
BLACK-CAP CHICKADEE         80
TUFTED TITMOUSE                  47
WHITE-BR. NUTHATCH             17
BROWN CREEPER                    1
CAROLINA WREN                      6
HERMIT THRUSH                       1
AMERICAN ROBIN                    19
MOCKINGBIRD                           8
STARLING                                 12
NORTHERN CARDINAL              22
TREE SPARROW                        1
SONG SPARROW                     53
WHITE-THROATED SPARROW 107
DARK-EYED JUNCO                  10
HOUSE FINCH                           83
AMERICAN GOLDFINCH              8
HOUSE SPARROW                  327

TOTAL SPECIES                        55

TOTAL INDIVIDUALS              1,771