Dredging Procurement

Canvey Lake fixes a £1m dredging budget

Published 28 October 2026 Publisher IMWO Region Europe Confidence Confirmed
Canvey Lake dredging: three sediment samples contain 5.7, 13 and 7.0 percent total organic carbon against a 3 percent inert-landfill criterion; AGA classifies the represented spoil as non-hazardous with facility-specific acceptance

IMWO original sediment-acceptance chart based on AGA July and August 2026 assessments

Castle Point Borough Council is selecting a Canvey Lake dredging contractor against a fixed £1 million budget excluding VAT. Technical quality carries 95% of the score and social value 5%. The material-handling plan will have to accommodate sediment that AGA classifies as non-hazardous but unsuitable for inert landfill.

Technical proposals compete within the same budget

The amended Find a Tender notice, EPP0391, gives a submission deadline of 2 November 2026 at 12:00 UTC. Three evaluators score the technical questions independently before agreeing a consensus score; the highest-scoring bidder receives the contract at the set value. The listed contract period runs from 4 January to 4 October 2027, with a possible extension to 4 January 2028. The council expects dredging in January-March and ground reinstatement in April, subject to Flood Risk Activity Permit approval.

The receiving facility shapes the affordable excavation

AGA's August waste classification assigns the sediment represented by three composite samples to List of Waste code 17 05 06. Its July acceptance assessment records total organic carbon of 5.7%, 13% and 7.0%, against the 3% inert-landfill criterion; chloride and total dissolved solids also exceed the relevant inert limits. AGA identifies a suitably permitted non-hazardous facility, subject to its own pre-acceptance and acceptance procedures. The receiver therefore needs to assess the actual material condition and proposed treatment before haulage capacity and disposal costs can be settled.

Evidence conclusion

Water handling belongs in the fixed-budget comparison

The council proposes temporary lagoons, dewatering and vacuum-tanker removal. It cites limited space and the duration of drying as reasons for off-site disposal. Proposals should connect the dredging extent to lagoon throughput, residual water carried, tanker movements and written receiver acceptance. A lower dry-solids content increases the wet load moved for the same sediment solids; slower dewatering occupies the limited lagoon area for longer. Both affect the excavation that fits inside £1 million. AGA's classification assumes partial evaporative dewatering without chemical conditioners, so a different treatment method would need to be checked against that assessment and the receiver's requirements. The council's survey estimate of about 42,000 m³ describes accumulated silt across the lake; the selected removal quantity must come from the current work specification.

Outstanding evidence

  • Current Open tender pack, latest clarifications and confirmation of the submission deadline
  • Flood Risk Activity Permit, temporary path closures and agreed contractor programme
  • Receiving-facility pre-acceptance, treated material condition, haul capacity and accepted dredging extent

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