Dredging operations in Dare County came to a screeching halt this week after federal permits authorizing work in Oregon and Hatteras Inlets where suspended because channels have been repeatedly dug deeper and wider than allowed.
The Army Corps of Engineers Wilmington District announced late Wednesday afternoon its suspension of all five of the county’s permits, immediately shuttering all dredging activities, on the heels of the county receiving its third notice of noncompliance.
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“The suspension is necessary due to the continued disregard of permit conditions and failure of implementing any corrective actions,” a Corps release states.
Nearly all – 98% – of EJE Dredging Service’s dredging loads from the inlets were removed either partially or completely outside the designated channels between September 2023 and June, according to data the Corps reviewed from the National Dredging Quality Management Program, which monitors operations and efficiency through sensors placed on dredges.
EJE Dredging Service was formed by Greenville business owner Judson Whitehurst in 2018 after state lawmakers funded $15 million to Dare County for dredging, according to a Raleigh News & Observer article.
Jordan Hennessy, a sitting member of the North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission, or CRC, is EJE Dredging Service’s CEO.
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Hennessy is a former legislative aide who worked in convincing lawmakers to provide the dredging funding, which was used to buy the hopper dredge Miss Katie, according to the News & Observer article.
Hennessy is named in two subpoenas related to a federal criminal investigation on a different project state lawmakers funded in 2020, according to the article.
Dare County received two noncompliant notices last year from the Corps, first in April 2023 and again in August, for work in the Manteo/Shallowbag Bay federal channel near Oregon Inlet.
“The data shows that work was unnecessarily conducted by dredging well outside the authorized widths and depths of the navigation channels,” according to the Corps.
Before the suspension is lifted, the county will have to provide the Corps “with proper documentation that an enforceable and viable protocol is in place to ensure compliance. Dare County must monitor, prevent, and self-report any future violations and non-compliance.”
Corps and county officials must meet to “discuss and define responsibilities, a compliance protocol and a path forward to reauthorize” the permits, the release states. It is unclear when that meeting will occur.
“USACE remains committed to a strong partnership with Dare County, however, the permit conditions must be met to minimize adverse long term negative impacts to aquatic and cultural resources,” the release states.
