Dredging of Puerto Rico’s biggest port begins as environmentalists warn of threat to turtles, corals

By DÁNICA COTO
Associated Press

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A $62 million project to dredge Puerto Rico’s biggest and most important seaport has started amid fierce opposition from environmentalists and a pending lawsuit. Crews will remove nearly 3 million cubic yards of marine floor to open the San Juan Bay to larger vessels including tankers that will serve a new liquid natural gas terminal. Officials say the dredged material will be deposited into the Atlantic Ocean two nautical miles north of the island in a move approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Environmentalists have said the project would endanger wildlife and humans, sucking up turtles and killing corals.