The Port Authority of Santander (APS) has put out to public tender the maintenance dredging of the navigation channel from Punta Rabiosa to Somo, once the necessary reports have been obtained, and which, as the president of the APS, César Díaz, points out, “is the traditional maritime communication route between Santander, Pedreña and Somo”. The senior port official adds that “its current state requires maintenance dredging to guarantee navigability under the best conditions.”
The works have a tender budget of 1,779,157 euros, divided into five annual installments, so that companies can submit their bids until next October 13. The works will consist of carrying out the dredging of the navigation channel from Punta Rabiosa to Somo, to bring it to the minimum operating level of -1.5 meters, relative to the port’s zero level. “This will remove sand accumulations in navigation areas that are an inconvenience for vessels, as they sometimes have to wait for higher tide levels to avoid a possible grounding,” explains Díaz.
The total length of the channel is 3,754 meters, with an arm at the beginning that goes towards El Puntal, which is 533 meters long. The maintenance dredging will be carried out over five annual campaigns, each with a planned volume that will not exceed 20,000 m3, in which different sections of the channel will be worked on, depending on the current situation. The operations will be carried out with a mixed grab and trailing suction hopper dredger, which absorbs the water and the sand it puts into suspension, “thus minimizing the generation of turbidity,” clarifies Díaz.
On the other hand, the Port Authority commissioned the Cantabria Environmental Hydraulics Institute Foundation to carry out a hydrodynamic study of the bay with the aim of “defining a proposal for the sustainable management of dredging in the navigation channel and the disposal of dredged material,” as it is an issue “of vital importance” for the port of Santander and its preparation is about to be completed to learn about its results and conclusions.
