A federal judge ordered an immediate halt on Thursday to plans to dredge a shipping channel on the Georgia coast, citing a threat to sea turtles nesting on nearby beaches.
ATLANTA - A coastal Georgia nonprofit is challenging a plan by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to do away with seasonal limitations on dredging activities that have long protected sea turtles and other marine life.
In a federal lawsuit filed Monday, the group One Hundred Miles is seeking a preliminary injunction to block the Corps from conducting year-round operation and maintenance dredging in Brunswick Harbor starting as early as mid-May.
OHM, SELC Challenge Unprecedented Changes to Georgia Dredging Windows
SAVANNAH, GA– Today One Hundred Miles (OHM), represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), filed a challenge against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ unlawful decision to eliminate highly successful seasonal limitations on dredging projects that have protected sea turtles and other marine life for decades.
Because hopper dredging can be harmful to sea turtles, fisheries, and other coastal wildlife, the Corps has historically conducted dredging activity in Georgia during the winter months (December 15-March 31), when adult loggerheads and other sensitive species are far less abundant in Georgia’s coastal waters.