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Deepening of the Elbe river in Hamburg begins

40 million cubic meters of earth, Sand, and silt – so much to move the excavator to the fairway up in the lower Elbe for container ship-to-giant free. The mega-project, however, remains controversial.

Start by the push of a button: the Minister of transport Scheuer (3. v. l.) with representatives from industry and regional policy

The dredging to deepen the shipping channel on the Elbe river has officially begun. During a boat trip on the lower Elbe, the Federal Minister of transport, Andreas Scheuer, and representatives of the Senate and the authorities gave the symbolic starting signal for the construction work on the electricity. As a result, the suction tube of the Dredger “Scheldt River fell” in the river Elbe – after 17 years of planning and a number of court proceedings.

Scheuer said, 13 complaints and processes to be decided at the end of legally, all of the concerns of the courts has been resolved. Several nature and environmental organizations have demonstrated, but also to the start of construction on the investors in the schleswig-Holstein Wedel and near the dredging vessel on the river Elbe with the boats. They fear the devastating impact of the mammoth project on the natural landscape and its plant and animal world. The associations no longer require that large ships can sail up the Elbe, but your cargo in Wilhelmshaven delete a port with deep water.

“Expothafen for Bayern”

Minister Scheuer argues against the “best tested and most peer-reviewed infrastructure projects in Germany”. For him, Hamburg “is also the largest port of export for California” – where the Minister has his roots. Hans-Heinrich Witte, President of the Directorate-General for waterways and shipping, stressed, of the total cost of the deepening of the Elbe river, approximately 15 percent was attributable to environmental and nature conservation measures.

Hopper dredger “Scheldt River” took up the work of The suction dredger draws earth, Sand, and silt in the cargo compartment

In the future, vessels with a draught of 13.50 metres irrespective of the tide in the port of Hamburg, or leave. On the flood tide, the allowable depth may amount to 14.50 meters. In addition, the driving is broadened trough and a Begegnungsbox for ships in frond built. In order for a waterway that can be navigated in both directions, is a one-way street. Overall, could be reached by the deepening of the Elbe river up to three million containers in addition to Hamburg, without the shipping companies would have to use more ships.

Already since the beginning of the year, preparatory Work was carried out. The project is one of the largest River engineering works in the world – to be moved up to 40 million cubic meters of dredged material. This corresponds to almost a thousandth of the volume of water of lake Constance, which is generally indicated with 50 billion cubic meters. The work is expected to be completed in 2021.

jj/kle (dpa)


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