A Deep Dive into Dredging with DCA’s Doyle

There’s more to domestic dredging than meets the eye. Dredging Contractors of America CEO Bill Doyle is just the guy tell you why.

William P. Doyle serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the Dredging Contractors of America (DCA). DCA represents the dredging industry on key issues before Congress and is an active partner to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, public port authorities, state and local governments, as well as allied construction and maritime organizations.

Immediately prior to this appointment, Mr. Doyle served as the Port of Baltimore’s Chief Executive for three years. He shepherded Maryland’s ports and terminal operations through the tumultuous downturn of cargo at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and through the microchip shortage. 

Working closely with the Maryland Congressional Delegation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mr. Doyle helped secure a $4 Billion Chesapeake Bay Restoration Project Agreement setting in motion dredging of Maryland’s federal approach channels for the next 35 years. He was instrumental in the team effort commanded by U.S. Coast Guard Sector Maryland-National Capital Region in taking the lead on an entirely Jones Act dredging and marine construction operation coordinating the refloating of the then grounded, Evergreen Ever Forward (March 2022).

Doyle, a graduate of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, also has a law degree from Widener University Commonwealth Law School. He is a marine engineer and lawyer and served nearly six years as a Presidential Appointee in the role of U.S. Federal Maritime Commissioner under the Trump and Obama Administrations – twice unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Previously, he served as the Director of Permits & Compliance for the Office of Federal Coordinator for Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Projects.  Earlier in his career he served as Chief-of-Staff, In-house Counsel, and Director of Government & Legislative Affairs for the Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association (AFL-CIO).

In short, DCA couldn’t have a more knowledgeable – or experienced – professional in its c-suite leadership role. But Doyle is more than a cheerleader. His advocacy on behalf of the nation’s dredging community spans myriad aspects of this complicated but critically necessary business. This month, he weighed in on ‘all-things-dredging’ with MarineNews.

• Domestic Dredging: competitive, bustling, and efficient, too

International dredgers characterize the American dredging industry as a “closed market.” Still others insist that the Jones Act protects an uncompetitive, inefficient domestic waterfront. And yet, the Jones Act dredging arena is nevertheless highly competitive. So says Bill Doyle, Chief Executive Officer of the Dredging Contractors of America. Doyle adds, “With respect to the competitiveness of the U.S. dredging industry, there is an average of three bidders on unrestricted projects and small business set-aside projects. Additionally, there is an average of three bidders on hopper dredge projects.” Hence, anyone who wants compete for work in the U.S. dredging arena today, had better sharpen their pencil first.
And, the business remains extremely busy, with no end to the backlog in sight. A closer look at the FY 2023 dredging season – as reported by Michael Gerhardt in the U.S. Dredging Report: An Analysis of the FY23 U.S. Federal Dredging Market, tells the full story.

For example, in FY2023, 56 different companies were awarded U.S. Army Corps of Engineers work with 21 large and 34 small businesses being awarded federal dredging projects. The scope of that work, explains Doyle, is simply huge. “The total awards amounted to nearly $2.1 Billion – a 39% increase from FY22; 20% above the seven-year average of $1.7 Billion; with FY23 capturing highest award year on record.” 

Competition, nevertheless, and in times of robust demand, remains fierce. That’s because the industry low bid, compared to the Government Estimate (GE) and Government Estimated Awardable Range (GEAR) provides ample proof of that metric. For example, 135 of 163 projects have available industry bid/GE comparisons and were not sole-sourced, while 85 of 135 had a winning bid lower than the GE; and 126 of the 135 (93%) had a winning bid lower than the GEAR. Of the 85 projects where industry was lower than the base GE, 63 projects were cheaper by more than 10%; 32 projects by more than 25%; 11 by more than 40%; and 4 by more than 50%. The savings to US taxpayers exceeds $700 million and equates to an average savings of 35% per project when compared to the GEAR.

• Dredging Locally; Thinking Nationally

There is a saying that all politics are local, but when it comes to dredging, the outlook typically depends heavily on what’s happening inside the Beltway. But unlike many other aspects of American life and policy-driven decisions, over time, the benign neglect of the U.S. waterfront has been a bipartisan event. That seems to be changing, of late. Nevertheless, the question of what will change on January 20th, and what will not, is on the minds of most waterfront stakeholders. Bill Doyle, for one, is not worried.

“The new Trump Administration will continue to support ports, infrastructure and jobs. President Trump will have republican majority in the House and Senate when he enters office on January 20, 2025. That said; dredging is bipartisan. The first Trump Administration was very creative in how it handled dredging.”

Doyle illustrates that reality by reminding us that, for instance, Trump signed the FY2020 Energy and Water Development appropriations bill into law as part of H.R.1865 and included the first regional dredge demonstration program for the central Gulf Coast. This program was created to explore innovative ways of executing dredging in a logical and sequenced manner to seek efficiencies and cost savings and minimize disruptions to critical construction and maintenance dredging requirements across the nation.

The then, U.S. Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama shepherded $274,300,000 in appropriations for the Port of Mobile. That funding accounts for the full federal share for the construction of the deepening and widening of the Mobile’s navigation channel. In addition, $85.35 million was allocated in the FY20 work plan to initiate construction of deepening the Mississippi River Ship Channel, Gulf to Baton Rouge (Louisiana) to 50 feet. 

The Gulf Coast is well represented in Congress this time around. Not to be left aside, Trump and Congress also set aside substantial funding for dredging projects in Boston, MA; Baltimore, MD; New York and New Jersey; and Oakland Harbor, CA. Doyle adds enthusiastically, “I think this time around will be more of the same, a continued focus on new construction projects, maintenance dredging and beach renourishment.”

• Dredging: on the cutting edge …

Probably the last way you might ever expect someone to describe dredging is in terms of “high tech,” “environmentally clean,” and/or “innovative.” But that’s exactly what is happening in domestic markets. “We’re always seeing the dredge industry improve and innovate – that’s part of the competition between the this heavily saturated market in the United States,” says Doyle, adding, “A relatively new entrant, Curtin Maritime, has really taken off in the clamshell market over the past five years.”

According to Doyle, Martin Curtin, the founder of Curtin Maritime is an “on-the-deck-plates” type of guy, understands marine engineering and design, and is quick to sling a wrench if needed. Along the way, Curtin has taken clamshell dredges to the next level. The clamshell dredge DB AVALON, for example, built in 2022, is a market-first, hybrid-powered dredge vessel and is considered the lowest carbon footprint clamshell dredge of its class. The DB AVALON employs the latest hybrid technology, combined with the most energy-efficient Tier 4 generators in the market. Curtin claims their hybrid power source allows for generators two-thirds the size of a conventional dredge vessel, thereby reducing CO2 emissions by 30% less than the highest tier rated generator available. The two QSK60 generators manufactured by Cummins uses a proven Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCT) technology with a flow-through exhaust after-treatment system, using diesel exhaust fluid (DEF), to deliver ultra-low emissions.

The four banks of 20 battery modules each, are controlled by state-of-the-art software. It optimizes charge and discharge cycles by harnessing regenerative power from normal digging operations and re-charging the batteries, further reducing fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. The DB AVALON has taken on some high-profile dredging projects in the Houston Ship Channel, San Juan Harbor in Puerto Rico and is now working in the Chesapeake Bay on the Baltimore approach channels. Curtin is continuing to expand and has plans for more technological advances with the construction of new dredges.

• Building for tomorrow, today

Martin Curtin isn’t the only U.S. operator building dredges for the U.S. Market. The broader U.S. dredge fleet, the U.S. private sector dredging industry, in particular, is in a great position. Bill Doyle explains, “The industry is keeping pace with its new construction of vessels and equipment. In fact, the U.S. dredging industry is in the midst of a $3 billion recapitalization with a focus on enhancing the capacity and efficiency of the fleet to meet the growing demands of federal and private sector projects. The industry's ability to deliver cost-effective solutions while contributing to environmental sustainability underscores its vital role in maintaining and improving the nation's waterways and coastal infrastructure.” The chart attached to this article shows just how much is going on:

The use of beneficial dredging material for tasks such as island building and coastal restoration is growing. Industry estimates put the use of dredged material at 30% of volume today, but the USACE wants to increase it to as much as 70% by 2030. Defined more specifically, reusing dredged material excavated from the seafloor, river and lake bottoms is known as beneficial use of dredged material. Such uses include rebuilding barrier islands, fish and wildlife habitat creation and restoration, beach nourishment, landfill cover, human recreation and land site remediation.

Beneficial use of dredged material in a harbor can have a significant impact on improving the condition of the harbor while also alleviating existing demand for development and use of new disposal sites. In FY23, 66% of the overall federal dredging program totaling 107 projects incorporated the use of dredged material for beneficial purposes, compared to 59% in 87 projects in FY22. And, while myriad projects have had a significant positive impact on local environments, a few specific projects are worth highlighting:

1. Buffalo River Dredging Restoring Wetland Habitat: The contractor is Cheboygan, Michigan based Ryba Marine Construction Company. With the retaining wall in place, dredge material is being beneficially reused to fill the old commercial slip near Wilkenson Pointe. This reuse of dredged material will transform the site into a wetland, restoring it to an aquatic habitat.
2. Florida: Pinellas County is planning a full nourishment of Pass-a-Grille beach that will be performed in phases. During the first phase, between 5,000 and 10,000 cubic yards of sand from the Grand Canal project was placed between 1st Avenue and 6th Avenue.  To fully nourish and restore Pass-a-Grille Beach, the County sought and received authorization from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to place an additional 140,000 cubic yards of sand from Pass-a-Grille Inlet between 1st Avenue and 22nd Avenue. This phase is divided into two sections. In the first section, sand will be placed from 1st Avenue to 9th Avenue. For the second section, sand will be placed from 10th Avenue to 22nd Avenue.
3. South Carolina: Here, dredgers are reusing the excavated dredged material from the Charleston Harbor Post 45 Deepening project to restore Crab Bank. Crab Bank is a bird sanctuary located in the Charleston Harbor near the shoreline of the Old Village in Mount Pleasant. Beneficially using material from the deepened channel restored 32 acres of prime nesting grounds, giving shorebirds and seabirds much-needed habitat for increasing their populations this spring and those to follow.
4. Maryland – Chesapeake Bay: A pair of vanishing islands off the coast of Dorchester County, Md., are to be restored using dredged sediment. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Supplemental FY 2022 Workplan allocates $37.5 million in funding that guarantees construction of the Mid-Chesapeake Bay Island Ecosystem Restoration project. The project will use dredged material to restore island habitat at James and Barren islands and help protect the Dorchester County shoreline from erosion. The project began in September 2022 and the island sites will eventually replace Poplar Island in Talbot County as the state’s primary receiving site for bay channel dredged sediment.  The larger of the two, James Island, will have 2,072 acres restored, with 55% preserved as wetlands habitat and 45% as upland habitat. At Barren Island, 72 acres will be restored as wetlands and the project will also include the installation of breakwaters to protect island remnants and adjacent seagrass beds.

• Dredging: a key component of the Intermodal Equation

The domestic waterfront, finally sitting at the grownup’s table in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s intermodal discussion, is poised to both grow exponentially, and take the domestic economy with it, when it does. That’s because the highways, trains and airports that span the fruited plain, coast-to-coast, are all but impotent without a secure and streamlined connection to our coastal ports, inland rivers and Great Lakes.

The collective waterfront represents the cleanest, and most efficient way to move cargo and people known to man. But none of that is possible without the dredging industry. Helping to spread the word, and herd the legislative cats, is DCA’s Bill Doyle. And, you’d have to dig pretty deep to find a better choice for the job.

This article was first printed in the January 2025 edition of MarineNews magazine.