The second phase of the North Manama Causeway Phase 2 and Busaiteen Link Project in Bahrain that included the construction of a large sand causeway for a six-lane, five-kilometer long stretch motorway has been completed by the contractor Boskalis, which is a conglomerate of VBMS, Dockwise, and Fairmount.
The first phase of the project was rolled out and worked on in 2018 and 2019, of which Boskalis managed to construct a three-kilometer-long embankment. Alongside dredging, phase two of the project included revetment work. Both phases of the project were for Bahrain’s Ministry of Works, as a part of a long-term plan developed by the government of Bahrain. Considering environmental safety and protection, the project had a strong emphasis on stakeholder management and community support.
A Journey of sand and rock
North Manama Causeway Phase 2 and Busaiteen Link Project in Bahrain required about 8.2 million cubic meters of sand. This requirement was facilitated and delivered by the Boskalis trailing suction hopper dredgers Causeway and Coastway. The sand was retrieved from a borrow area about two kilometers from the north-eastern region of the project’s site. The hopper dredgers were used to pump sand directly to the embankment right after which it was hydraulically compacted.
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To protect the banks, well over 340,000 tons of rock ranging from small to large boulders were installed by a local contractor. The rocks weighed more than two tons and were brought in from a quarry in Askar. The multiple layers of rock were placed on well about 180,000 square meters of geotextile.
Arjan van Bruggen, the project’s manager, assured concerned parties that environmentally-friendly measures were embraced throughout the project’s duration. He expressed that with consultation from the relevant authorities, they implemented various precautions towards preventing turbidity. He explained that silt screens and the construction of temporary but efficient dikes were used to safeguard the quality of the waters around Bahrain during the reclamation work.
