NORFOLK, Va.--With a heavy-duty pump steadily providing the
heartbeat for a recent research operation, the Engineer Research
and Development Center's Toxicology Laboratory cradled 75
electronically-wired oysters in a first-of-its-kind experiment,
testing the effects of various sediment levels supporting the
Corps’ Norfolk District dredging operations. Project Director
Dr. Burton Suedel explained the experiment would provide data
for the Norfolk District to address concerns brought by some
state regulators and other stakeholders who contend the yearly
dredging operations along portions of the James River resulted
in sediment plumes that harm oysters where they occur, in areas
of the river where fresh and salt water mix, providing living
conditions essential for oyster reefs to thrive. Funding for
this research comes from the Dredging Operations and
Environmental Research (DOER) program. Assisting Suedel in this
unique experiment, Barry Marcel of the University of Louisiana
at Monroe (ULM) carefully weighed and