Philadelphia District Civil Works

An official website of the United States government

Here's how you know

Official websites use .mil

A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.

Secure .mil websites use HTTPS

A lock () or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

US Army Corps of Engineers

Philadelphia District & Marine Design Center Website

/ /

Civil Works Projects

The Francis E. Walter Dam has prevented more than $220 million in flood damages since its construction. It also supports recreation along the Lehigh River with planned fishing and whitewater rafting water releases.

The Dredge Fullerton, owned and operated by Barnegat Bay Dredging Company, conducts dredging in the New Jersey Intracoastal Waterway near Stone Harbor, NJ in 2019 as part of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project. The sediment was placed to create habitat on marshland owned by the New Jersey Division of Fish & Wildlife.

The Dredge McFarland is one of four ocean-going hopper dredges owned and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. She operates in the Delaware River and is available for urgent dredging missions around the country.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and its contractor deepened Reach AA of the main channel of the Delaware River in 2014-2015. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company used a bucket dredge to complete the work along the river from the Ben Franklin Bridge to the Walt Whitman bridge.

Blue Marsh Lake provides year round recreation activities including fishing, hiking, and sight-seeing. Always remember – wear a life jacket. and take a course on boating safety before going out on the water!

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Philadelphia District and its contractor built two sections of a seawall and rebuilt portions of the Atlantic City boardwalk along the Absecon Inlet in Atlantic City, N.J. Work was completed in April of 2018 and is designed to reduce damages from coastal storms.

Wilmington Avenue Before and After - initial construction of an elevated 25 to 180-foot wide berm was completed in 1991 as part of the Cape May to Lower Township project. Cape May City beaches were often in a severely eroded state prior to the initial construction and periodic nourishments in subsequent years.

Initial construction of the the New Jersey Shore Protection, Great Egg Harbor and Peck Beach, (Ocean City), NJ project was completed in 1992. The project undergoes periodic nourishment on a 3-year cycle.

Navigation

We maintain more than 550 miles of navigable waterways, including the 45-foot Delaware River federal navigation channel from Philadelphia to the Atlantic. The District operates and maintains the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. Other navigation projects include the Schuylkill River, Wilmington Harbor, the New Jersey Intracoastal Waterway, and many coastal harbors and inlets. We also own and operate the Dredge McFarland.

Coastal Storm Risk Management

We are especially noted for our key role in reducing damages to about 100 miles of New Jersey and Delaware Coastline. We've completed coastal storm risk management projects in Ocean, Atlantic and Cape May Counties in New Jersey and at Broadkill Beach, Lewes, Rehoboth and Dewey Beaches, Bethany and South Bethany and Fenwick Island in Delaware.

Flood Risk Management

The District also protects communities in the Delaware River Basin from flooding while providing water supply and enhancing both water quality and recreation. We operate 5 earthfill dams in eastern Pennsylvania: Blue Marsh Lake near Reading; Beltzville Lake and Francis E. Walter Dam in the Poconos; and Prompton Lake and Jadwin Dam in the northeastern corner of the state.

Studies and Technical Assistance

Our Planning Division partners with project sponsors to conduct feasibility studies. These studies involve comprehensive economic, environmental and engineering analyses. Current investigations include a comprehensive study considering solutions to back bay flooding problems in the state of New Jersey.

The Continuing Authorities Program allows us to respond to a variety of water resource problems without the need to obtain specific congressional authorization for each project. This decreases the amount of time required to budget, develop, and approve a potential project for construction. Project areas include ecosystem restoration, streambank protection, environmental improvements, flood control and navigation.

We have two primary programs that make the agency’s technical expertise available to support local communities. Each USACE Technical Assistance program has its own specialization and requirements, but they are all geared towards assisting states, U.S. territories, Native American Tribes (Tribal Nations), and communities to identify planning-level solutions to address water resource problems. Technical assistance can range from modeling and analysis to planning and initial designs”. However, detailed design or construction of water resource projects cannot be completed under these programs. USACE primarily provides technical assistance through its Floodplain Management Services (FPMS) program and Planning Assistance to States, under which USACE staff are funded to conduct technical analysis and services.

Environmental Infrastructure

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is able to provide design and construction assistance to non-Federal interests for carrying out water related environmental infrastructure, resource protection and development projects under Section 219 and Section 566. Construction is cost shared 75 percent federal and 25 percent non-federal.

Civil Works

The Philadelphia District maintains more than 550 miles of navigable waterways in the Delaware River Valley. We own and maintain the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal and the 5 high span bridges that cross it. The District nourishes beaches in New Jersey and Delaware to reduce the risk of storm damages to infrastructure. We operate 5 dams in eastern Pennsylvania that have prevented hundreds of millions of dollars in floods damages. We execute a number of smaller projects under the Continuing Authorities Program and Environmental Infrastructure authorities. And we provide technical assistance to other federal, state, and local agencies.