ICYMI: Kaine Meets with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Norfolk District to Discuss Tangier Island and Other Projects to Boost Resiliency in Hampton Roads
WASHINGTON, D.C. — This week, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine met with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Norfolk Division Commander Colonel Brian P. Hallberg to discuss Tangier Island and other projects to boost resiliency in Hampton Roads.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to meet with Colonel Hallberg and other members of the USACE Norfolk Division to discuss ongoing projects to protect Tangier Island and boost resiliency in Hampton Roads,” said Kaine. “I’ve been proud to secure funding to protect Tangier Island from coastal erosion, as well as for other projects in the region, but we need to do more. I’m working to secure more resources for Tangier to help save the island and its community, history, and culture and am glad that President Biden’s proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2025 includes robust funding for that effort. I’ll be working to get that request across the finish line and will continue pushing to support ongoing efforts in Hampton Roads to address sea level rise.”
During the meeting, Kaine and Hallberg discussed USACE projects to protect Tangier Island from erosion and sea level rise. Kaine secured $800,000 in the Fiscal Year 2023 and 2024 government funding bills for studying and permitting the use of dredged material to be used to help Tangier address sea level rise and recurrent coastal flooding and storms. The President’s proposed Fiscal Year 2025 budget includes $10.3 million for the project. Kaine recently thanked Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Shalanda Young for this funding during a Senate Budget Committee hearing.
Kaine and Hallberg also discussed other USACE projects in Hampton Roads. Kaine has worked to secure significant federal funding to increase resiliency and protect Virginia’s coastal communities from the impacts of sea level rise. He secured over $399 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) funding for the Norfolk Coastal Risk Management Project, which will reduce and manage flooding in Norfolk. He secured $1.5 million in BIL funding for the Virginia Beach and Vicinity Coastal Storm Risk Management Study, which will help improve the long-term vitality and resilience of the City of Virginia Beach. Kaine secured over $225 million for the Norfolk Harbor Deepening and Widening Project, which will allow two-way traffic in and out of the harbor and prevent delays to commercial and military vessels. He also secured $3 million for the Peninsula Regional Flood Risk Management feasibility study in Hampton and the surrounding region.
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