Are the nation's ports adequate for our present and future needs? This volume points out that no significant new deep-water construction has occurred for a decade, and provides the information and analysis needed to goad the ports and the federal government into action. The book asks three questions: Is additional port construction and maintenance dredging needed now or over the next 20 years? What would prevent dredging if it is needed? What alternatives could make additional dredging possible? The book identifies several problems in dredging ports, including the long interval between a decision to deepen a port and the time the alterations are complete. The United States needs to speed port construction to meet changing needs, and the committee recommends that we prepare for future needs by dredging now.

The leading authority in the field offers a unique and comprehensive treatment of the construction aspects of offshore structures, rather than the more commonly addressed design considerations. Extensively updated, this second edition provides a new chapter on extending offshore technologies to inland waterways and emphasizes recent advances-including floating structures, deep-water structures, ice-resistant structures, and bridge foundations. Construction of Marine and Offshore Structures details all the particulars of building in a marine environment, including construction equipment, marine operations, installing piles, pipelines, and cables, steel and concrete offshore platforms, and underwater repairs. Construction of Marine and Offshore Structures provides an essential reference to engineers in the oil and service industries and to marine construction planners, designers, and contractors. New in the second edition: How the physical environment and geotechnical conditions affect construction Increased attention to protecting the natural environment and compliance with regulatory provisions Recent developments in positioning, instrumentation, and underwater inspection, plus a new section on concrete and steel floating structures and installing permanent moorings Expanded treatment of deep water bridge piers as well as locks and dams on major rivers.