$1M in dredging funds not enough, manager says

WASHINGTON – The 2004 Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill passed by the Senate last week includes $1 million to dredge the Narraguagus River in Milbridge.

Despite the good news, Milbridge Town Manager Fred Ventresco said the amount might not be enough to begin work this year. Ventresco said he was “very disappointed” with the amount of money allocated to the water project, which is estimated to cost $3.8 million.

The Narraguagus needs immediate dredging, said John Chipman, the town’s harbor master. During low tide, some boats hit the river bottom and navigation is “inconvenient,” he said.

The situation is most precarious at the Milbridge marina, Chipman and Ventresco said. Chipman, a fisherman since he was 14, said the channel has been shallow for 15 years.

The river last was dredged in 1968, said Marc Habel, project manager for New England marine projects at the Army Corps of Engineers.

“We will now examine our options,” he said when asked if the Senate bill provided enough money to start the dredging project. He acknowledged that Congress may be asked for more money for the project next year.

“We are concerned that the dredging will not take place this year due to the much lower than expected sum,” Ventresco added.

The Senate appropriations bill contains another $2.2 million for water maintenance projects in Saco, Scarborough, Searsport and Wells Harbor. The sum for those projects is significantly lower in the House appropriations bill, which does not include the Narraguagus project. House and Senate negotiators must try to reconcile the differences in the bills before the start of the 2004 fiscal year on Oct.1.

In total, the Energy and Water Development legislation will cost about $27 billion.