The Atlantic Salt property, located on the Kill van Kull in New York Harbor, has been a berth for bulk shipment of materials since the 1800s and is now used for unloading and distribution of road salt. The existing shoreline structures were in poor condition and shoreline erosion and berth depth were impacting vessel berthing and cargo offload at the site. The site also had multiple derelict manufacturing buildings that were unsafe and required demolition.

GEI designed the new deep-water berth with a steel sheet bulkhead and dredge of 60,000 cubic yards of material. The bulkhead and tieback design had to include the high site surcharge loads caused by the salt stockpile close to the berth.  The proposed tieback systems also had to allow for the presence of multiple large piled concrete foundations on this former industrial site.

Vessel berthing at the site was also restricted by the Federal channel and the berth design had to avoid impacts to navigation and allow for vessel wakes from the busy channel. A detailed mooring analysis was performed to develop mooring loads and safe operational criteria for the berth.

GEI provided site investigation, topographic and hydrographic survey, design, and permitting services for all aspects of this project including the bulkhead, vessel fendering and mooring, dredging, and building demolition. Effort included overseeing dredge sampling and testing to meet regulatory requirements and location of suitable disposal areas including a remediation site offshore.