In-water construction begins on 2nd Bangor base wharf
Published 12:01 am Friday, September 28, 2012
BANGOR — Contractors began in-water construction Thursday of a second explosives-handling wharf at the Bangor submarine base on Hood Canal.
Crews have moved barge cranes and material supply barges to Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor and will install piles with vibratory and impact pile drivers.
Construction barges will move in and out of Hood Canal during non-peak commuting hours on the Hood Canal Bridge.
Pile driving — which will occur only during daylight hours — will be heard from places along Hood Canal outside of the base.
There will be no more than eight barges on-site at any time, Navy officials said.
Tugboats on site
Tugboats will tow barges and position them for construction, then leave the site.
Smaller skiff-type boats will support construction activities and monitoring of sensitive species.
Separate lawsuits have been filed in federal court by the group Ground Zero for Nonviolent Action and the Suquamish tribe to halt construction of the $715 million project which is expected to take 42 to 48 months.
Preliminary injunctions
Both seek preliminary injunctions to delay work until the cases are decided.
The Navy is notifying the public of construction activities at www.nbkeis.com.
Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor is home to eight Trident missile submarines. It is about 40 road miles south of Port Townsend in Kitsap County, across Hood Canal from rural Jefferson County.
