Dredging management practices for the environment : a structured selection approach

Abstract

PIANC Working Group Envicom 13 was established as a forum for the development of prudent guidance for the selection of management practices designed to provide environmental protection in dredging projects. The working group encompassed experts from around the world, working for the dredging industry, port administrations, consultancies and research institutions. The report has now been published as PIANC report Nr. 100 and provides guidance for the consideration and selection of management practices for environmental protection based on objective scienceand engineering-based factors and specifications. It describes in brief the full process of a dredging project from conception to the operational phase and indicates where and how in this process the essential decisions on the implementation of management practices (MPs) should be taken. A distinction is made between MPs and best management practices (BMPs). The report also discusses the application of the “Precautionary Principle” as used in the assessment of effects on the environment and provides tools to conduct dredging projects in an environmentally sound manner. Properly applied the precautionary principle provides incentives to develop better solutions. Risks can be reduced by applying correctly selected MPs. A CD-ROM added to the report provides detailed descriptions of potential management practices and comprehensive information.