Tackling freight mobility challenges at Port of Coos Bay

A maintenance dredging project in the Coos Bay harbor from River Miles twelve to fifteen, aimed to remove approximately 1,000,000 cubic yards of material from these areas, is currently underway.

Dredging in this section of the Federal Navigation Channel was also conducted throughout the summer of 2019. This area of the Upper Bay spans from the Oregon Chip Terminal to the Georgia Pacific Sawmill site. 

Prior to the dredging work that took place in 2019, this channel had not been dredged since 2010. 

Maintenance dredging work, undertaken by American Construction Company, will be performed continuously, 24 hours per day and 7 days per week, and is scheduled to be completed October 31, 2020. The dredged material will be removed from the channel and placed offshore at Ocean Disposal Site H. 

Under the official dredging plan, American Construction Company will utilize the clamshell dredge “The Patriot” to load two split hull scows, the “Liberty” and the “Freedom”. The scows will be towed by Pacific Tug Company to the offshore material placement site. 

Importance of Coos Bay

Coos Bay’s channel is ideally located on Oregon’s southern coast. The Port is one of the largest coastal deep-water channel from San Francisco to the Puget Sound. 

The navigation channel is just 15 miles long, taking only 2 hours to reach open ocean from river mile 15. 

The geographic location of the Port of Coos Bay is optimal for shipping to Asian and other international markets. 

Coos Bay has access to a comprehensive multimodal transportation network including convenient access to maritime, rail, air, and highway modes. 

The Port owns over 600 acres of greenfield, developable industrial lands on the North Spit alone, within both Free Trade and Enterprise Zones, and the North Bay Urban Renewal Agency boundary. 

Need for a wider and deeper channel

Over the past decade, maritime freight transportation has trended towards larger and larger ships, resulting in the need for wider and deeper channels nationwide. Their current channel poses navigational challenges to larger vessels, particularly related to vessel draft, and the ability to safely maneuver within the current channel footprint. 

Larger log and chip vessels moving in and out of the Port must synchronize passage with high tides, and often leave the port in a light loaded condition to reduce draft. 

Vessels that are light loaded are less efficient and generates higher cost for the shippers.

Modification of the channel will provide multiple opportunities for economic development in the South Coast. The increase in width and depth will allow existing and projected future cargo vessels to have less restricted access to berths and terminals, reducing delays and increasing the efficiency of port operations.

The channel modification will also increase loading efficiencies for existing and future cargo vessels, which would allow industries to transport freight at lower unit costs. 

The Port’s goal is to promote the use of Coos Bay’s deep-water port in order to strengthen the development of a stable, diversified, and healthy regional economy while improving the quality of life in the region. 

Why now?

There is a significant need in Oregon for maritime import and export capabilities.

A recent study conducted by the State of Oregon estimates that annually, the equivalent minimum of 38,170 40-foot containers of goods are exported from the mid and southern Willamette Valley, Southern Oregon, and the Oregon coast to the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma.

This means Oregon goods must first travel out of state by truck or rail to reach international markets.  

Agricultural and natural resource based industries in Oregon are struggling to move their goods to world markets in a timely and cost-efficient manner. International shipping markets are continuously evolving, which presents competitive challenges in maritime commerce.  

These challenges present an opportunity to examine the needs of Oregon’s current import and export markets. It is imperative to evaluate alternatives that are potentially more beneficial for the movement of Oregon goods to foreign markets. 

The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay and the Southern Oregon Coast are at a transformative point in their history, and poised to tackle freight mobility challenges.