Tag Archives: federal dredging funds
Maine: York Harbor officials, fishermen rally for federal dredging funds
York town officials are fighting for federal funding to remove a buildup of sediment in York Harbor that threatens to ground local fishermen and recreational boaters alike. As part of their effort to draw attention to the problem, the Town of York Harbor Board staged a demonstration Sunday to show how silt deposits from the York River encroach on mooring areas, forming shoals that crest the water at low tide. A group of fishermen and harbor officials stood atop a mound of sediment that juts above the water level at low tide in the middle of one of the harbor’s basins, near the mouth of the river. York Harbormaster David Hutchinson. “They can’t come in at low tide,” he said. According to Harbor Board Chairman David Webber, York Harbor contains moorings for about 330 commercial and recreational boats. Another 200 boats use the harbor regularly but are moored in private marinas. The harbor generates $12 million to $15 million of economic activity each year, he said. “We don’t want to lose any of it, especially with fishing being such a tough business right now,” Webber said. Read the story here 07:54
