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Pushed by a combined effort by local and state politicians, community organizations and chemical plant representatives, congressional funding of about $3 million has been approved for the dredging of Chocolate Bayou.

“We couldn’t have done it by ourselves, there’s no doubt about that,” said Don Heimbach, operations superintendent at Equistar’s Chocolate Bayou facility. “Everybody played a part, and I know that’s a cliché but it’s true.”

The about $3 million was included in a supplemental bill passed by Congress shortly before Christmas, said Dick Gregg III, an attorney for Conservation and Reclamation District No. 3 who worked to get the funding.

“I’m just grateful to see that the federal government has noticed the importance of Chocolate Bayou and has funded this waterway project,” Gregg said.

The bayou represents a vital means of transportation for the chemical plants off FM 2004 that are along its shores — more than 3,000 barges traverse the bayou every year, carrying and delivering chemical materials. The waterway is scheduled for dredging every four years to reduce the natural buildup of silt, but recent difficulty in acquiring federal funding has stifled the dredging for about seven years and made the bayou nearly impassable, Gregg said.

Barges require a minimum of 9 feet of water for clearance, and some areas in the bayou had shallowed to 71?2-feet deep. If this funding was not approved, there could have been dire repercussions to the chemical plants’ transportation capacity, said Equistar spokeswoman Lillian Riojas.

“Part of this process was assuring the viability of the plants that they’d continue to operate, because barges are a critical part of the transportation network,” she said.

The three plants along the bayou — Equistar, Solutia and BP — combine to employ 1,600 people, create $130 million in annual revenue, purchase $240 million in goods and services and provide $30 million in taxes, Gregg said.

“The channel is critical to our operations, so that’s why there was a concentrated effort amongst the plants, and thanks to our local and federal officials, we were able to get the money,” Riojas said.

The push for funding included the Economic Development Alliance for Brazoria County, Brazoria County Reclamation District No. 3, chambers of commerce and numerous Texas politicians, said Equistar operations superintendent Don Heimbach. He listed Republican U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchinson, and Congressmen Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, Chet Edwards, D-Waco, and Ron Paul, R-Surfside. Judge John Willy also was credited with helping with the project, Riojas said.

The dredging process will consist of two phases, the first one for constructing areas to place the dredged materials at a cost of about $6 million, which already has been allotted. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers already has contracted for the development of these placement areas and the work is in progress.

The second phase involves dredging seven miles of the bayou at a cost of $3 million.

The Corps will begin seeking bids in April for dredging contractors, and the dredging should start early in the summer, said Corps spokeswoman Marilyn Uhrich.

Dredging will remove between 850 to 1,000 cubic yards of silt, said Corps Project Engineer Luis Saenz. The dredge material will be deposited in the placement areas along the shoreline to become new marshland, Gregg said.

The Corps is authorized to lower the bayou to 14 feet deep but, Gregg said “We’re happy if it’s at 12.” He expects the project to finish by September.

Though this success has been sweet, David Stedman, president and CEO of the Alliance, said his eye already is on accelerating future projects.

“This is a great team effort for the entire county and they should feel pleased with the effort, but what we have to do now is focus on other projects equally important to the county, like opening of the mouth of the San Bernard and deepening and widening of the Port of Freeport,” he said.

Chris Robinson is a reporter for The Facts.
Contact him at (979) 849-8581.

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