OXNARD, Calif. —U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials met with residents April 30 at Hollywood Beach Elementary School to discuss impacts from the Channel Islands Harbor dredging project when it returns in fall 2026.
The meeting brought together representatives from the LA District, U.S. Navy, Ventura County, and the city and port of Port Hueneme. The LA District oversees the congressionally mandated dredging project in Oxnard, which performs an essential function for Ventura County, as Port Hueneme is the only deep-sea port in California between San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Port Hueneme, not to be confused with the city of the same name, was built during the late 1930s and is owned and operated by the Oxnard Harbor District, which is composed of the Board of Harbor Commissioners, the U.S. Navy and the State of California. It is a major logistical hub that allows agriculture and other industries, as well as the U.S. Navy, to trade, operate and employ residents within Ventura County, bringing jobs and tourism to the local communities of Oxnard and Port Hueneme.
“These dredge projects are a super high priority,” said Kristen Deca, CEO and port director of the Port of Hueneme. “We’ve done a lot of work with the U.S. Army Corps (of Engineers) in the commercial harbor from cleanups back in the 1990s and building confined aquatic disposal cells to contain materials, and then we’ve done a bunch of deepening projects inside the port to support the Navy and the port.
"It’s really important to the integrity of our infrastructure, inside the gate for the military and the commercial seaport,” Deca continued. “We’re just grateful that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers comes out and helps us with these really vital projects for our community.”
The dredging project began in the early 1960s under USACE to solve the problem of coastal erosion caused by the construction of Port Hueneme’s jetties, which disrupted the natural north-to-south flow of sands along the coast, also known as littoral drift. This disruption led to coastal erosion at down-shore beaches, which threatened port infrastructure and local communities.
In response, USACE constructed the Channel Islands Harbor primarily to act as a sand trap to collect sand deposited by the littoral drift to then dredge it down-shore, replicating the natural flow of the littoral drift before port construction. The Channel Islands Harbor also provided the secondary benefit of supporting local recreational boating and fishing communities within Oxnard’s shores.
“The dredging is an important part of the whole system that we need here to keep our harbor open,” said Michael Tripp, Ventura County Harbor Department harbor director. “If we didn’t have the dredging, we’re going to have the sand close the north side of the harbor pretty quickly — and it’s also important because it keeps the beach of Port Hueneme from eroding.”
Contractors working for the LA District move sand through pipelines across Hollywood and Silver Strand beaches to deposit it on Hueneme Beach. Dredging typically occurs every two years in the fall. A mid-cycle dredging in 2025 was necessary to make up for material shortfalls and delays from the previous year. At the school meeting, residents expressed concerns regarding noise, light and air pollution from the 24-hour diesel-operated dredge, which operates 24 hours a day to meet strict scheduling criteria. LA District employees noted these concerns as they plan for the dredging’s return later this year. The team also detailed the federal contracting process to help the community better understand how projects move from planning into reality.
"I think it was really important to see the community in person and hear them directly about what problems they've been having with the dredging,” said Victor Andreas, LA District project manager. “It makes a difference to have our other agency partners in the meeting working together to come up with solutions that can help mitigate some of the discomfort caused by the dredging, because this is a really important project that does a lot for the nearby cities and overall county. I'm proud of my team and our partners for making this happen."
During the last cycle, the district reduced engine noise at night and adjusted lighting angles to minimize the footprint without compromising safety. The project team is also implementing in-depth noise monitoring for future operations.
The LA District continues to fulfill its congressionally mandated duties while considering the impacts to the community on Hollywood Beach and plans to host another community engagement before dredging activities resume in fall 2026.
To learn more about the Channel Islands Harbor dredging project and for future updates, visit [https://www.spl.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Navigation/Channel-Islands/](https://www.spl.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Navigation/Channel-Islands/).