The dredging is part of a two-year contract totaling $8.6 million and ensures accessible depths for large vessels. The dredged material was placed into the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority’s confined disposal facility. 

Dredging of Toledo Harbor is scheduled to be conducted by the Corps every year, based on need and the availability of funding. This recent dredging project was conducted under a $4.4 million task order issued on May 6, 2025, marking the final year of the two-year contract. The initial task order, issued in 2024, totaled $4.2 million. 

Toledo Harbor is a deep draft commercial harbor which handled 10 million tons of cargo, including iron ore, coal and lignite, soybeans and salt in 2022. Waterborne transportation facilitated by the harbor supports $592.3 million in business revenue, 2,393 direct, indirect and induced jobs and $183.2 million in labor income to the transportation sector. 

Photo courtesy of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Buffalo District/Photo by Jess Levenson