THIRTEEN YEAR IMPLEMENTATION RETROSPECTIVE ON THE DREDGED MATERIAL MANAGEMENT PROGRAM(DMMP)IN THE NORTHWEST

摘要

The Dredged Material Management Program is a cooperative interagency program in Washington State for regulating and managing dredged material in Puget Sound,in Grays Harbor/Willapa Bay,and in the Lower Columbia River.Each of the four cooperating agencies(U.S.Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle District(lead agency);U.S.Environmental Protection Agency,Region 10;Washington State Department of Ecology;and Washington State Department of Natural Resources)has jurisdiction over dredging and disposal of dredged material.The effort to develop a new interagency program to manage dredged material began in 1985 in Puget Sound.Called the“Puget Sound Dredged Disposal Analysis” (PSDDA)Study,it was developed over a 4.5 year,two-phased cost shared study for$4.5 million dollars. The study brought the federal and state regulatory and resource agencies,environmental interest groups, and the public together through a consensus process.Two overlapping Environmental Impact Statements developed state-of-the-art evaluation procedures,identified environmentally acceptable disposal sites, and developed site-specific monitoring plans to assess the success of management objectives.In 1995 the interagency model for PSDDA was extended to the coastal Washington estuaries in Grays Harbor and Willapa Bay,and in 1998 to the lower Columbia River.The evaluation procedures developed for these two areas was conceptually patterned after the PSDDA evaluation procedures,with modifications that reflected local hydrodynamic conditions and chemicals of concern.Upon completion of the dredged material management manuals for these three diverse water bodies,the interagency program established to implement them became the“Dredged Material Management Program”. Successful DMMP implementation involves close interagency coordination and consensus on all aspects of dredged material management,including sampling and testing design,sampling plan review and approvals,chemical and biological testing data interpretation,and QA/QC review.The process culminates in a project specific suitability determination memorandum is signed by all four agencies.The DMMP prepares biennial reports documenting all aspects of the program including project testing summaries,testing cost evaluations,program/regulatory processing evaluations,documentation and summaries of disposal site monitoring.A Sediment Management Annual Review Meeting(SMARM)is conducted in the spring of each year to provide feedback to the public on program status and proposed updates to the management plans,while allowing public input.All Documents are available at the web address:http://www.nws.usace.army.mil/PublicMenu/Menu.cfm?sitename=dmmo&pagename=home. Thirteen years of implementation have provided predictability and feedback to the dredging community and resource agencies and public on the environmental acceptability of the DMMP.Implementation has been very successful in Puget Sound and Grays Harbor/Willapa Bay,but still faces some challenges on the lower Columbia River.The DMMP is now working to resolve outstanding sediment management challenges,and to identify and manage dredged material for beneficial uses.