Coastal Waterways Inventory RFP

Location:	Mississippi
Posted:	Aug 7, 2026
Due:	Sep 10, 2026
Agency:	Southern Mississippi Planning & Development District (SMPDD)
Type of Government:	State & Local
Category:	B - Special Studies and Analyses - Not R&D
Publication URL:	To access bid details, please log in.

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REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

Coastal Waterways Inventory Project

Request for Proposals Issued: August 7, 2026

Proposal Due: September 10, 2026 at 11:00AM CST

Table of Contents

SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION............................................................................................... 3

SECTION 2: PROJECT OVERVIEW ..................................................................................... 3

Scope of Work........................................................................................................................ 4

Project Schedule .................................................................................................................... 5

SECTION 3: FINAL DELIVERABLES ........................................................................................ 5

SECTION 4: PRICING AND FEES............................................................................................. 6

SECTION 5: RFP SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS .................................................................. 6

SECTION 6: PROPOSAL EVALUATION AND SELECTION PROCESS.................................... 7

Project Understanding and Technical Approach: 40 Points .................................................... 8

Project Team and Firm Qualifications: 25 Points .................................................................... 8

Relevant Project Experience: 25 Points.................................................................................. 8

Budget: 10 Points ................................................................................................................... 8

SECTION 7: QUESTIONS/REQUESTS FOR CLARIFICATION ................................................ 8

SECTION 8: CONDITIONS AND LIMITATIONS ........................................................................ 8

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP)

Coastal Waterways Inventory Project

Issued by: SMPDD

SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION

The Southern Mississippi Planning and Development District, Inc. (SMPDD) is issuing this

Request for Proposals (RFP) to solicit proposals from qualified firms to provide professional

services for a comprehensive coastal waterways inventory and dredging needs assessment for

non-federal waterways along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. For the purposes of this RFP, non-

federal waterways refer to any historically maintained tidally-influenced, coastal channels,

bayous, canals, and other navigation corridors that are not federally maintained. The selected

proposer will evaluate existing channel conditions, identify maintenance dredging needs,

develop a geospatial inventory of coastal waterways, and assist the counties in obtaining

maintenance dredging permits, and authorization for submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV)

mitigation sites.

Mississippi’s coastal waterways provide critical access for commercial fishing, recreational

boating, tourism, and emergency response. Many non-federal channels, bayous, and navigation

corridors experience recurring sedimentation that restricts navigation and requires periodic

maintenance dredging. However, a comprehensive inventory of these waterways, their existing

conditions, maintenance history, and long-term dredging needs has not been developed.

SMPDD is seeking a multidisciplinary consultant team with demonstrated expertise in

hydrographic surveying, geographic information systems (GIS), environmental permitting,

submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) assessment and management, and project management.

The selected consultant team will evaluate sediment accumulation and shoaling, assess

maintenance dredging requirements, perform SAV assessments, compile data into a GIS-based

waterways inventory, and develop recommendations for future dredging priorities.

Key objectives of this project are to establish a coordinated maintenance dredging program by

assisting Hancock, Harrison, and Jackson Counties in obtaining county-wide, ten-year

maintenance dredging permits, as well as the necessary authorizations for at least three (3)

SAV mitigation sites across the Coast.

The completed inventory, assessment, and permitting documentation will provide local

governments with a long-term planning tool for prioritizing maintenance dredging.

SECTION 2: PROJECT OVERVIEW

The project goal is to assess current navigation conditions in coastal Mississippi waterways to

identify areas where sediment accumulation compromises vessel access and infrastructure

safety, develop a comprehensive coastal waterways inventory that catalogs rivers, bayous,

channels, and harbor access points, including their depths, widths, and dredging history,

evaluate submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) presence and health to ensure dredging and

sediment management practices support ecological integrity, provide data-driven

recommendations for prioritizing maintenance dredging, sediment placement and SAV

mitigation that balances navigation needs, coastal restoration, and wetland protection, and

enhance coastal resilience by linking navigation infrastructure planning to wetland and estuarine

ecosystem health supporting storm surge mitigation and hurricane protection.

The selected team will collaborate with SMPDD and the coastal communities to create a

comprehensive coastal waterways inventory and dredging needs assessment for Hancock,

Harrison, and Jackson Counties. A prime consultant will lead a multidisciplinary team that may

include, but not be limited to: engineers, surveyors, GIS specialists, environmental scientists,

and permitting specialists. The team should include a minimum of four (4) firms (including the

prime and subcontractors) of substantial contribution, demonstrate local area knowledge and

expertise coupled with regional scale and depth necessary to complete the project in a timely

and effective manner.

The project will compile existing information, perform hydrographic and SAV assessments,

evaluate shoreline shoaling, estimate maintenance dredging needs, and prioritize waterway

dredging based on navigation importance, public safety, economic value, and maintenance

frequency. The project will also develop a long-term permitting strategy. The consultant team

will prepare permit application packages and coordinate with federal and state resource

agencies to obtain ten-year maintenance dredging permits for each coastal county, and SAV

mitigation site authorization for at least three (3) sites.

Scope of Work

1. Project Management and Coordination: The prime consultant shall provide overall project

management, quality assurance/quality control, schedule management, and administration

of all subcontractors. The prime consultant shall serve as the primary point of contact and

be responsible for coordinating all project activities and deliverables.

2. Dredging Needs Assessment: The team shall conduct field investigations, as necessary,

to evaluate existing channel conditions of non-federal navigation waterways throughout

Hancock, Harrison, and Jackson Counties. The team shall analyze bathymetric survey data,

historic dredging records, existing channel conditions, and other available information to

identify current and future maintenance dredging needs. The assessment shall identify

critical shoaling areas, estimate maintenance dredging requirements, evaluate maintenance

frequency, and prioritize waterways requiring immediate or periodic maintenance based on

navigation importance, public safety, and operational needs. Please discuss in your

proposal any additional investigations required to determine the dredging needs.

3. Coastal Waterways Inventory: The consultant shall develop a comprehensive geospatial

inventory of non-federal waterways throughout Hancock, Harrison, and Jackson Counties.

For each waterway, the inventory must include existing channel depths, sediment

accumulation rates, historic dredging records, existing permits, municipal maintenance data,

estimated dredging needs, and maintenance priority rankings. The inventory shall be

delivered in a fully editable GIS format compatible with ESRI software.

4. SAV Assessment: The consultant shall evaluate the presence, distribution, and condition of

SAV within the project areas to support the acquisition of ten-year maintenance dredging

permits and permits required for SAV mitigation sites. The assessment shall include the data

collection, mapping, and documentation necessary to satisfy applicable permitting

requirements.

5. Final Report: The consultant shall prepare a draft report documenting the results of the field

surveys, dredging needs assessment, and coastal waterways inventory. The draft report

shall include recommendations for maintenance dredging priorities and an implementation

plan for future maintenance activities. The draft report shall be submitted to SMPDD and

participating counties for review and comment. The consultant shall incorporate or otherwise

address comments received and submit a final report reflecting the revisions.

6. Maintenance Dredging Permitting: The consultant shall coordinate with the U.S. Army

Corps of Engineers and other applicable federal and state regulatory agencies and perform

all services, including preparation, submission, and revision of permitting applications and

responses to agency comments or requests for additional information, required to obtain

final permitting determinations for county-wide, ten-year maintenance dredging permits for

eligible waterways within Hancock, Harrison, and Jackson Counties.

7. SAV Mitigation Site Authorization: The consultant shall coordinate with the U.S. Army

Corps of Engineers and other applicable federal and state regulatory agencies and perform

all services required, including preparation, submission, and revision of permitting

applications and responses to agency comments or requests for additional information, to

secure authorization for at least three (3) SAV mitigation sites located across the Coast.

Project Schedule

SMPDD anticipates that the dredging needs assessment, coastal waterways inventory, SAV

assessment and final report will be completed within 12 months of contract execution. SMPDD

anticipates that the maintenance dredging permitting and SAV mitigation site authorization will

be completed within 24 months of contract execution. SMPDD recognizes that the consultants

may structure their process differently; however, SMPDD expects a clear project schedule,

milestone dates, and a plan that ensures all deliverables will be completed within 24 months of

contract execution.

SECTION 3: FINAL DELIVERABLES

Deliverables for the project include:

1. Coastal waterways inventory and dredging recommendations. The final coastal

waterways inventory shall be delivered to SMPDD in GIS file formats compatible with

ESRI software. The final report, maps, engineering analyses, and all supporting work

products shall be provided electronically in PDF format. In addition, access to any

background information, data, field survey data, and other information compiled over the

course of the project must be provided without restriction.

2. Ten-year maintenance dredging permits for Hancock, Harrison, and Jackson

Counties. The consultant shall perform all services required to obtain final permitting

determinations for ten-year maintenance dredging permits for Hancock, Harrison, and

Jackson Counties that include all eligible waterways. The required deliverable shall be a

final written determination from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approving or denying

each requested permit. Submitting a permit application alone shall not satisfy the

requirement of this task.

3. Permitted SAV Mitigation Sites: The consultant shall perform all services required to

obtain final permitting determinations for SAV mitigation sites, strategically located

across the coast. A minimum of three (3) approved sites is expected. The required

deliverable shall be a final written determination from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

approving or denying each requested permit. Submitting a permit application alone shall

not satisfy the requirement of this task.

Once completed and delivered to SMPDD, the final products and all related work materials,

documents, files, data, and information become the sole and exclusive property of SMPDD,

This is the opportunity summary page. It provides an overview of this opportunity and a preview of the attached documentation.

Coastal Waterways Inventory RFP

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