mining the dead sea | feature stories Dredging underway Carving a receiving basin that will house the pump heads and a dredging channel to ensure the minimum required submergence is underway. The area being cleared is at -445.00 m and will yield a total dredging quantity of 480,000 m3 from the Dead Sea floor bed. Sedimentation concerns Sedimentation within the dredging basin and the channel was found to be negligible at the project’s onset. The deposition rate will however become significant five years into PS3’s lifecycle and a sedimentation layer of 1.20 m inside the basin could reach the pumps’ suction bell mouth within 10 years. The team’s recommendation is a five-year basin and channel maintenance clearing work schedule to avert serious damage and ensure consistent PS3 intake operation. 41