City to complete major dredging of Marina this spring

This spring, the City of Cold Lake will be completing a major dredging program of the Cold Lake Marina to remove excessive accumulation of silt and vegetation.  

The City is hoping to extract 5,200 cubic meters (approximately 180,000 cubic feet) of material from the lake bed. A specialized centrifuge will be used to spin the dredged materials, separating the lake water from the materials being removed. The extracted material will then be loaded onto trucks for proper disposal.

This will be the  largest dredging project the City has ever taken on, with the cost of the dredging project coming in at just over $700,000. The set up and dredging will take place  between April 24 through May 19, pending weather and lake conditions. 

“The Cold Lake Marina is very well known and admired throughout the province. There is a lot of upkeep that comes along with maintaining its reputation,” Mayor Craig Copeland said. “Dredging is an important part of operating and maintaining the  marina to ensure that boaters here are able to launch and dock their boats safely, but  it is costly and requires significant environmental approvals. We do not get too many  chances to undertake dredging operations of this size, so we want to make the most  of this operation while it lasts.” 

The dredging operations will run around the clock to ensure that the project schedule  is met in time for boating season. Residents close to the marina can expect some  traffic and sound disruption during this operation, but these will be mitigated as much  as possible. The City of Cold Lake appreciates the public’s understanding and  cooperation during this project.  

City of Cold Lake staff aim to have the marina open for the May long weekend. The opening day will ultimately depend on the lake conditions and a formal  announcement will be made as the date approaches and is finalized.