Environmental impacts and regulatory policy Implications of spray disposal of dredged material in Louisiana wetlands

Abstract The capabilities of a new wetland dredging technology were assessed along with associated newly developed state and federal regulatory policies to determine if policy expectations realistically match the technological achievement. Current regulatory practices require amelioration of spoil bank impacts upon abandonment of an oil/gas well, but this may not occur for many years or decades, if at all. Recently, a dredging method (high‐pressure spray spoil disposal) was developed that does not create a spoil bank in the traditional sense. Its potential for reducing environmental impacts was recognized immediately by regulatory agencies for whom minimizing spoil bank impacts is a major concern. The use of high‐pressure spray disposal as a suitable alternative to traditional dredging technology has been adopted as policy even though its value as a management tool has never been tested or verified. A qualitative evaluation at two spoil disposal sites in saline marsh indicates that high‐pressure spray dis...