Overview

The Southern Area Office is responsible for the dredging maintenance of more than 325 miles of federally authorized navigation channels along the south Texas coast from the Rio Grande to Matagorda Bay. In addition, the office manages construction contracts for several federal agencies in its area of operations including the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Army Reserve. Dredging and construction contracts within the southern area exceed approximately $100 million annually.

Corpus Christi Resident Office

The Corpus Christi Resident Office's area of responsibility and major mission emphasis includes 18 south Texas counties and approximately 150 miles of Texas Gulf Coast known as the Coastal Bend. Our navigation mission includes surveying, assessing, designing, and constructing heavy civil works projects within approximately 300 miles of federal navigation channels.

Staff responds to potential hazards to navigation from sunken vessels or other concerns that impact navigation including tropical storm response. Important features of work on Corps navigation projects include emergency shoal removal, new channel construction, habitat creation, habitat restoration, beneficial use of dredged material, erosion protection and beach nourishment.  

We monitor and maintain over 68 miles deep draft channels which includes the Corpus Christi Ship Channel and the Matagorda Ship Channel with associated entrance channels and jetty systems. In addition our focus includes monitoring and maintaining 230 miles of shallow draft channels which includes the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, Channel to Victoria, Channel to Palacios and other tributary channels.  

Subsidiary to the mission above is to provide construction management and quality assurance oversight for vertical and other waterway construction work for various customers to include the Corpus Christi Army Depot, Department of Homeland Defense, Army and National Reserves and the Corpus Christi Port Authority. 

Rio Grande Valley Resident Office

The Rio Grande Valley Resident Office's area of responsibility and major mission emphasis is maintaining approximately 75 miles of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway passing through the Lower Laguna Madre, 38 miles of shallow draft channels to the Port of Harlingen and Port Mansfield and 21 miles of deep water channel of Brazos Island Harbor Channel to Port of Brownsville and Port Isabel.

Unique to this office, we also provide construction management and project oversight to Department of Homeland Security projects, U.S. Border Patrol projects, U.S. Army Reserve projects and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement projects covering approximately 10,000 square miles of Texas coastal and border regions. Hydrographic Surveying staff responds to potential hazards to navigation from sunken vessels or other concerns that impact navigation including tropical storm response.