Don't get me wrong. The Jones Act is terrible. It has nothing to do with 'Labor Costs'. Jones Act is used very liberally in lawsuits to protect ship owners ag

Don't get me wrong. The Jones Act is terrible. It has nothing to do with 'Labor Costs'. Jones Act is used very liberally in lawsuits to protect ship owners against worker injury. Dredging is not a bottleneck. Money is. You can't throw a bigger dredge at the problem. Dredges rotate between contracts. Some cities might need deeper channels other might want a wider beach. Sand shifts on the sea floor. It is highly unpredictable. Mother nature will put sand where she wants. Most people have no idea how abrasive sand is. Imagine sandblasting the inside of your dredge pump while its running. That is what happens. The thing is most dredge pumps have an impeller casing of 8 foot diameter. It is a huge pump on the scale of hydroelectric pumps. But it pumps a slurry of sand. Very maintenance intensive even with hardfacing interior surfaces..