USACE Clears the Way for Coast Guard Readiness in St. Petersburg
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Jacksonville District team is dredging the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) boat basin in St. Petersburg, removing built-up sediment to improve access for Coast Guard crews to dock, maneuver within the basin, and deploy vessels more readily at low tide.
"We are grateful to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for its partnership and support in maintaining reliable access to the basin,” said Capt. Courtney Sergent, commanding officer of Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg. “In addition to improving day-to-day access within the basin, the dredging project will help prepare the facility to receive a new Inland Construction Tender, part of the Coast Guard’s Waterways Commerce Cutter program, which will replace USCGC Vise. The new cutter's significantly greater draft further reinforces the need for dredging operations as the Coast Guard modernizes its aging fleet.”
It is a relatively small project, but the impact goes well beyond the basin. The work helps the Coast Guard stay ready for search and rescue, law enforcement, maritime security, emergency response and other missions along the Gulf Coast.
For the Coast Guard crews based in St. Petersburg, reliable access to the boat basin is not just convenient. It is part of being ready to respond when they are needed.
“The work we are performing is mechanical dredging to remove sediment that has built up in the Coast Guard’s boat basin,” said Steve Klemme, Jacksonville District Technical Support Branch Chief with the South Florida Operations Office, who is overseeing the field crew. “The project will help ensure Coast Guard vessels can get underway when needed by removing sediment that currently limits movement in the basin, particularly at lower tides.”
Once the work is complete, larger Coast Guard vessels will be able to use the station’s southern seawall and dock closer to the federal channel. That gives crews more flexibility and removes a restriction that can slow down vessel movements.
“This work will allow their larger vessels to be stationed closer to the federal channel and enhance the Coast Guard’s ability to respond to emergencies at a moment’s notice,” Klemme said.
That is why the project matters. Coast Guard personnel need to be able to get underway quickly for emergencies, security operations, law enforcement, environmental response and search-and-rescue missions. A shallow basin should not be the reason a vessel has to wait.
“Jacksonville District’s Operations Division is providing direct support to the Coast Guard to ensure their numerous mission sets, such as boat and vessel operations, safety and national security along the Gulf,” Operations Division Chief Tanner Clark said. “While USACE and USCG have distinctly different mission sets, we are primary partners and joint stakeholders toward ensuring everything from navigation, to security, to facility readiness, and of course public service to our citizens and to our great nation, the United States of America.”
One Team, Shared Mission
The project brings together people from across the Jacksonville District Operations Division and its South Florida Operations Office. Heavy-equipment operators, truck drivers, towboat personnel, mechanics, engineers, safety specialists, work leaders and administrative staff are all contributing to the same goal: helping Coast Guard crews stay ready.
“This team is unique for various reasons, but at the end of the day they are focused on accomplishing the mission,” Clark said. “They have numerous capabilities aligned with executing our operations and maintenance mission in South Florida, including multiple business lines like flood risk management and navigation. This project brought several staff together in multiple organizations within the Operations Division to support the Coast Guard.”
That kind of support is part of USACE’s larger operations and maintenance mission. USACE maintains navigation infrastructure, manages water resources, reduces flood risk and supports environmental stewardship. In St. Petersburg, the team is applying those same skills directly to a Coast Guard operational need.
“The team has a wide range of capabilities, and this project brought those capabilities together in support of another federal agency,” Clark said. “The work requires operational knowledge, technical expertise, field experience, engineering support and a strong safety culture. It is one team focused on one mission.”
Klemme said the work is a good match for the South Florida Operations Office team and its equipment. “Our team is happy to help any federal agency accomplish its mission,” Klemme said. “It just so happens that our equipment and team are suited to assist the Coast Guard with its mechanical dredging needs.”
The Coast Guard’s work affects people every day, whether they see it happening or not. Its crews protect ports and waterways, enforce laws at sea, support emergency response, safeguard the maritime environment and carry out security missions important to the nation’s economy and defense.
“The Jacksonville District crew knows what a vital asset the Coast Guard provides the United States by ensuring the borders and waterways are safe for the citizens and also their families,” Klemme said. “That is why the team takes this work seriously. We understand that helping the Coast Guard maintain access to its vessels helps support the people who protect our waterways and our nation.”
Planning for Reliable Access
Before the dredging started, the team had to answer some practical questions: How much sediment needed to come out? Where could the crew safely excavate? And where would the dredged material go?
“The engineering need was determining how much material needs to be removed for access to the dock, determining the limits of excavation and determining where to take the dredged fill,” Jacksonville District Project Engineer Keijo Hardin said. “The project was updated using a recent survey and the limits were established by the permit.”
That planning involved engineers, operations personnel and Coast Guard representatives. The team looked at survey data, permit conditions, excavation boundaries, waterfront structures, equipment staging areas, hauling routes and dredged-material requirements.
“The project is not simply a matter of putting equipment in the water and removing sediment,” Hardin said. “We follow the environmental requirements in the permit and engineering requirements, while confirming that the plans still meet the Coast Guard’s objective.”
USACE and Coast Guard personnel have stayed in close contact through planning and execution to make sure the work meets the Coast Guard’s needs while staying within environmental and engineering requirements.
“Follow-up meetings and questions onsite helped ensure all objectives were understood and agreed upon,” Hardin said. “The goal is to deliver a solution that is safe, buildable and useful to the Coast Guard.”
The result will be better access to the dock and southern seawall, more reliable movement in and out of the basin, and fewer restrictions caused by shoaling.
“Completing this project will enable the Coast Guard to traverse and dock more effectively at the station,” Hardin said.
The Crew Behind the Work
Mechanical dredging takes more than an excavator and a barge. It depends on a crew with different skills working together throughout the project.
“Our crew is so diverse that it takes all of their skills to accomplish this mission,” Klemme said. “We have several heavy-equipment operators that are digging the sediment and hauling it in dump trucks offsite. We have a mechanic that keeps all the equipment in top shape so that downtime is nonexistent.”
The towboat captain helps position the barge using the dredge survey, making sure operators are digging in the right places and staying within approved limits. Engineers, work leaders, safety personnel and administrative staff handle the planning, oversight and coordination that keep the operation moving.
“The towboat captain positions the barge according to the dredge survey to ensure we are digging in the correct spot,” Klemme said. “The support staff — work leaders, safety, engineers, administrative support and others — ensure all the administrative tasks are taken care of so that the crew can excel at what they do.”
The team starts each day with a safety meeting and equipment inspections before beginning work. Operators remove sediment, truck drivers haul it away and the mechanic moves between machines to keep them running. “The mechanic continually runs from every piece of equipment ensuring they are operating as intended,” Klemme said.
At the end of the day, the crew secures the towboat and barge, washes salt from the equipment, greases the machinery and reviews the day’s progress and any needed repairs.
“Around 1730 they will all meet in the galley of the towboat to meet about the day’s work and discuss items that need attention,” Klemme said. “Anything that needs repaired for the next day will be brought up to management, and they will formulate a plan to keep the program going forward.”
Safety Comes First
The worksite includes water, vessels, heavy equipment and moving trucks, so safety is part of every decision the crew makes.
“Completing the project in a safe and responsible manner is a priority of the Army Corps and its operators,” Hardin said. “We discuss safety and the project briefing daily. Personal protective equipment (PPE) is required for all operators and visitors.”
For the crew, safety is more than something covered at the start of the shift.
“Always wear your PPE anytime you are on the work site,” Klemme said. “If you see something, say something. Working near water has its challenges, and the crew is always prepared for worst-case scenario.” The team also must be ready to adjust when site conditions change.
“Their ability to adapt to currently changing conditions is something I am proud of,” Klemme said.
When the crew arrived one morning and found that the turbidity barrier had been moved, they had to quickly develop a plan to redeploy it so work could continue while protecting water quality Klemme said that willingness to step in wherever needed is one of the crew’s strengths.
“Most of the crew will always do anything necessary to accomplish the mission, even if it is not in their job description,” Klemme said. “They are mission-first teammates.”
Supporting a Federal Partner
The U.S. Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg dredge project is an example of federal agencies using their different capabilities to support the same public-service mission. The Coast Guard brings maritime law enforcement, search and rescue, security and emergency-response expertise. USACE brings engineering, navigation, equipment and field operations capability.
“While USACE and USCG have distinctly different mission sets, we are primary partners and joint stakeholders,” Clark said. “We are working toward navigation, security, facility readiness and public service to our citizens and to our great nation.”
For the South Florida Operations Office team, the project also shows what the district can do when another federal partner needs help.
“It shows the ability of our South Florida Operations Office team to accomplish nearly any job that is brought to us,” Klemme said. “Most crews in other USACE districts have a specialty that they focus solely on, and our crew is willing to tackle any project that comes our way.
“It says a lot about the guys and also the leadership for stepping out of their comfort zone,” Klemme said. “We appreciate all opportunities to assist our federal partners.”
Hardin said the Coast Guard’s response has made the project especially meaningful.
“The most rewarding part of the project has been seeing and hearing from the Coast Guard members at the St. Petersburg station,” Hardin said. “You can tell that they are interested in and appreciate the work being completed.”
When the work is finished, the Coast Guard will have a deeper, more dependable boat basin, better access to the southern seawall and more flexibility to deploy vessels when needed.
For Klemme, though, success also means bringing everyone home safely.
“Success looks like all the guys return to the South Florida Operations Office safely and content,” Klemme said. “The Coast Guard is happy with the results of our work, USACE is happy that our schedules are met, and the crew learns at the same time.”
“These guys are not a professional dredge team,” Klemme added, “but with their basic skill sets and having the right equipment, we can accomplish anything.”
The dredging work at U.S. Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg may be small in scale, but it reflects a bigger commitment: federal agencies supporting one another so the people responsible for protecting the nation have the access, equipment and readiness to respond when the country calls.
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