THE largest sand dredging operation in the Port of Portland’s history will begin later this week.

About 155,000 tonnes will be shifted from the entrance to the harbour before the end of the year, with the work scheduled to start this weekend, as the port looks to catch up on history.

Normally about 100,000 tonnes would have been dredged for the port to meet its statutory requirement to move 50,000 tonnes a year – due to the cost the dredging is actually done every two years in November (the end of one official year) and December (the start of another).

Port harbourmaster Andrew Hays said a barge was due to arrive from Adelaide on Thursday and it was hoped to begin dredging at the weekend.

Port chief executive Greg Tremewen said that the extra 55,000 tonnes needed to be taken out due to sand build-up over decades.

That had been neglected when the port was under public ownership and the amount the port was legally required to do was not enough to prevent a further build-up.

“Hydrological surveys have shown that the sand is encroaching on the channel,” he said.

“Our plan is to move 50,000 tonnes prior to November 30 and another 105,000 tonnes in early December.”

And in future the port would look to dredge an average 60,000 tonnes a year to prevent further build-up.

Mr Tremewen said the extra sand “might well be good news” for Dutton Way, where the sand eventually ends up, and which lost its original beach in the 1960s after the port came into being.

“They will have an extra big beach at some point in the future,” he said.

However, Mr Tremewen warned anyone looking to get a good view of the dredging to do so safely, not from the rocks at Anderson’s Point, where the port would have fences up and staff guarding the area round-the-clock.

“It’s like quicksand,” he said.

“It’s a mixture of water and sand and comes out there at a very fast rate and builds up quite quickly and acts like quicksand.

“We need everyone to stay away from the area at Anderson’s Point.

“It’s always interesting to look at but the best place is from the top of the cliffs,” he said.