Located in the town of Eyemouth on Scotland’s south-east coast, Eyemouth Harbour is the largest and most secure harbour in the surrounding area.
The harbour provides 24-hour, lock-free access to a deep water berthing facility and is a busy and industrious port for commercial boats, fishing vessels and leisure boats.
Eyemouth Harbour is home to a fleet of 20 fishing vessels, which range in size from small creel boats to large trawlers. In addition, the harbour hosts touring leisure crafts and is popular with visitors during the summer as well as supporting offshore wind projects and workboats operating in and transiting along Scotland’s east coast; in particular those operating in the Firth of Forth.
At present the harbour is undertaking an important dredging programme which has been designed to remove sand and sediment from the bottom of the harbour which in turn will increase water depth.
Expert dredging company Shearwater Dredging Ltd is undertaking the operation, utilising the hopper barge MV Shearwater and dredging unit Forth Reclaimer.
Work began on the first phase of the project in June 2014 and reached completion in July. Phase Two of the project will take place in October 2014.
Speaking to Premier Construction about the project, Eyemouth Harbour Business Manager, Christine Bell, said:
“All harbours have a dredging programme designed to remove sand, silt and various materials which come into the harbour from the sea. At Eyemouth Harbour we also have a river which flows into the harbour and this brings additional sediment. The materials collect at the bottom of the harbour so need to be removed.
“By implementing a dredging programme at Eyemouth Harbour we are able to prevent this build-up of materials allowing us to optimise the harbour’s depth.”
The work on Phase One of the project took place during quite a busy time for the harbour, so staff and the dredging team worked carefully to ensure that disruption of existing services was kept to a minimum. Throughout the first phase mariners were updated on the project’s progress via the Eyemouth Harbour website and were advised by the harbour to navigate their vessels with caution.
Christine commented:
“During the work on Phase One we moved a few of the vessels around the harbour to remove them from the dredging works and this allowed us to complete the work as efficiently as possible. The harbour users have been happy to accommodate the works.”
With work on the first phase successfully completed Eyemouth Harbour is closer to providing deeper vessels with improved access to the harbour.
Christine said:
“It is very important for all harbours to be dredged and Eyemouth Harbour is no different. With work now complete on the first phase we have effectively achieved what we set out to achieve during Phase One. This is a very important project for Eyemouth Harbour and we are pleased with its progress.”
Eyemouth Harbour is located within the heart of Eyemouth town, so is close to a number of local amenities including shops, restaurants, museums, galleries and an 18-hole golf course. The town is popular with locals and visitors alike and with its clear waters, beautiful scenery and stunning wildlife is the perfect place to relax.
As a lively port, Eyemouth Harbour is a true focal point for the town and is located just two miles from the A1 trunk road and 15 minutes from Berwick-upon-Tweed. The harbour includes two fully serviced pontoons with disabled access and boats are available for sightseeing and fishing trips.
For more information about Eyemouth Harbour, please visit: www.eyemouth-harbour.co.uk.
