scope:

Scope of the Manual. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the USACE dredging program. Chapter 2 describes USACE navigation project dredging management processes and provides a comprehensive summary of the dredging equipment used by USACE for activities associated with new work and maintenance projects. It also provides guidance on the evaluation and selection of dredging equipment, presents an overview of environmental impacts from dredging, and discusses the evaluation, selection, and management of placement alternatives. Chapter 3 describes open-water placement and the major hydrodynamic environments associated with it.

Purpose. This Engineer Manual (EM) presents a comprehensive summary of the dredging equipment and dredged material placement techniques used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and it describes management and design processes associated with newwork and maintenance dredging related to navigation projects. Guidance is provided on the following dredging topics:

a. Evaluation and selection of dredging equipment for various materials to be dredged.

b. Planning, designing, constructing, operating, and managing environmentally acceptable open-water and confined dredged material placement areas for both short- and long-term placement (disposal) needs.

c. Planning, designing, developing, and managing dredged material for beneficial uses while incorporating ecological concepts and engineering designs with environmental, economical, and social feasibility.

In this document, the terms "placement" and "disposal" are used synonymously to describe dredged material deposition after its removal from the dredging prism.

Applicability. This manual applies to all USACE Commands having responsibilities for administering USACE dredging programs.