Wicomico River

The project is located on the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay. The project provides for a channel 14 feet deep and 150 feet wide from the Chesapeake Bay to Salisbury, including a 100 foot wide channels with turning basins all 14 feet deep in the north and south prongs, and a 60-foot wide channel 6 feet deep from deep water in the river to Webster Cove, with a T- shaped basin in the cove 100 feet wide and 400 feet long and extension of the basin 200 feet long and 100 feet wide on each side. The total project length is 37 miles. The port of Salisbury has the third highest commercial port in Maryland, consisting of petroleum products and grain. Barge traffic is crucial to maintaining adequate fuel supplies for the Delmarva Peninsula. STATUS: FY 2012/2013 funding used to complete maintenance dredging of lower river channels and commence engineering & design for future maintenance dredging of other reaches of the upper river. CONTRIBUTION TO CHESAPEAKE BAY: Contributes to Executive Order 13508 goals by innovatively protecting environmental habitat, improving water quality, and expanding public access within the Chesapeake Bay watershed. NON-FEDERAL SPONSOR: Somerset and Wicomico Counties, Maryland, are the local sponsors and are required to provide lands, easements and rights-of-way for the dredging and the placement of the dredged material. FY 2012 Completed Work: Completed maintenance dredging of upper river channels near Salisbury. Commence engineering & design for future maintenance dredging of lower river and awarded dredging contract for lower river. FY 2013 Scheduled Work: Initiate and complete maintenance dredging contract of the lower river with FY2013 funding. The funding provided would be the existing level of service at the project to commence and complete the dredging of the lower river channel. Based upon national priorities, budget resources are not available to maintain the entire channel to its full authorized dimensions. The Corps optimizes dredging efforts with available funding. For more information regarding the Wicomico River, MD contact Heather Batchelder, CENAB-OP-N, (410) 962-3687, e-mail [email protected]. Also see this project’s related web page at