↖Delaware & Raritan Canal
Canal Dredging
Dredging Information
FAQ
Meetings

Project Overview

The Delaware and Raritan Canal (Canal) is a source of drinking water for up to 1,000,000 central New Jersey residents. The New Jersey Water Supply Authority (NJWSA) is responsible for maintaining the Canal to ensure that it can continue to function as a source of raw drinking water. The Canal is fed by the Delaware River and numerous smaller streams, channels, and other runoff sources along its 60-mile length. The streams and other flows carry sediment to the Canal. This sediment from road and land runoff is deposited in the Canal, decreasing its capacity to convey water. Periodically, the sediment needs to be removed to restore the Canal’s original capacity. The sediment removal process, known as dredging, is necessary to ensure that the Canal can continue to provide a reliable source of drinking water and recreational opportunities to the residents of New Jersey.

The 10-mile section of the Canal that will be dredged is located between Route 27 (Kingston) and Amwell Road (East Millstone); all within Franklin Township, Somerset County (see map below). This dredging project is expected to take four years. The actual dredging operations will take place during three consecutive calendar years. The projected amount of sediment to be removed from the Canal is approximately 248,000 cubic yards. As dredging progresses, the wet sediment will be transported by floating pipes in the Canal to a temporary staging area where the sediment will be dewatered. Once dry enough, the sediment will be trucked to an offsite facility for beneficial reuse, with the drained water returned to the Canal after treatment.
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Floating dredge vessel
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Operations to remove submerged aquatic vegetation
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Pipes carrying dredged material to dewatering site
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Dredged material dries inside geobags at the dewatering site
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Dried material is loaded onto a dump truck for delivery to the beneficial reuse site
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The 2018 dredging season produced enough material to fill 31 geobags
Active dredging
Active vegetation removal

Towpath Closures

The in-water portion of the project is complete. Occasional, temporary closures of the towpath may be necessary during the demobilization phase of the project. Signage will be posted at D&R Canal State Park entrances surrounding the closed areas to notify the public.

Project Updates

Information as of December 2021:
  • The project is complete. A total of 182,488 cubic yards of sediment was removed from the Canal over the three-year dredging program.
  • All dewatered sediment has been relocated from the dewatering site on Canal Road.
  • Restoration of the project sites is complete. An isolated area of Canal Road repaved in Fall 2021 will be monitored over the winter and repaired in the early Spring of 2022, as needed.

A Public Hearing was held on Monday, May 13, 2013 from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Township of Franklin Municipal Building, 475 DeMott Lane, Somerset, New Jersey 08873. To view the presentation, click here.

For a complete list of updates and meeting information, click here.

Contact Us

If you need to contact us or you would like to be included on the stakeholders list, please e-mail dredginginfo@njwsa.org