Crews have started the dredging process for Bogue Inlet. They will be making their way down to New River Inlet, New Topsail, Carolina Beach and Lockwood’s Folly Inlet in the next few weeks.
Army Corp met with town leaders Monday to go over finances.
The dredging process costs each inlet $500,000 per year. Come September 30, federal funds will be gone and local governments will have to come up with $250,000, which will be matched by Army Corp.
Representatives with the Corps said the federal government doesn’t think shallow draft inlets are important enough for financial help.
Robert Schoonmaker of the Carolina Beach Inlet Association is disappointed.
“It is disappointing to see that the funds that were allocated for inlet dredging are taken away from something that generates revenues and tax dollars to the state and federal government, and reallocated somewhere else,”said Schoonmaker.
Dredging for New Topsail will start September 8, 2012.
Dredging for Carolina Beach will be from September 9-11.
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