What is a beneficial use?
Beneficial use of dredged material is recycling of dredged material for use as a product that has value. Dredged material has historically been considered a waste product and managed by creating facilities for permanent placement. Recently, the USACE and other technical experts in the maritime industry and material recycling field have found alternatives involving the use of dredged material for beneficial use. Examples of beneficial use of dredged material include beach replenishment, shoreline restoration, island restoration, manufactured topsoil, construction fill, landfill, abandoned mine and brownfield cover, and habitat restoration. Dredged material can also be heat treated and formed into lightweight aggregate and building blocks. Storage capacity is limited within existing confined disposal facilities (CDFs) and diminishing each year. With increased quantities of dredged material to be managed and the high cost and space limitations involved in creating new CDFs, beneficial use
