Edited 01.02.2026 to provide current status: 2026 is the critical year for funding. Public support is essential to securing state and federal funding for this project. Please sign today.  The Little Wicomico River (LW River) is a 9-mile tidal waterway with more than 123 miles of shoreline, located where the Potomac River meets the Chesapeake Bay. For over four centuries, this river has provided safe navigation and access to the Chesapeake Bay for families, watermen, and visitors. In 1935, it was formally authorized as a federal navigation channel under the Rivers and Harbors Act. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers designed the project with an 8-foot deep, 150-foot wide channel, protected by two stone jetties and stabilized by bulkheads, ensuring a vital connection between the Chesapeake Bay and the Little Wicomico River. 

But today, the Little Wicomico River Jetty at Smith Point—the river’s only entrance to the Chesapeake Bay—is dangerously shoaled. Last dredged in 2014, the Jetty currently has a very narrow channel with a depth of less than 3 feet in a tidally shifting, meandering channel, with the rest of the entrance impassable due to shoaling.

The Joint Permit Application has been submitted by Northumberland County and the Northern Neck Planning District Commission.  2026 is the year to obtain funding.  If dredging is not funded, we risk losing the traditions, jobs, safety, and heritage that define coastal Virginia—and a vital access point to the Chesapeake Bay for the entire Commonwealth.

⚠️ What’s at Stake?

• Safe navigation for recreational and commercial users of 3+ marinas and ~800 docks and ramps
• Daily access for local watermen fishing and crabbing in the Chesapeake Bay-now being affected by shoaling
• Oyster growers & seafood processors operations that depend on open water routes-now being affected by shoaling
• Charter boat operations that rely on direct Bay access-reports of boats damaged and awaiting repair due to shoaling
• Public safety is at risk, with Smith Point Sea Rescue—an all-volunteer lifesaving organization—forced to navigate dangerous conditions at the Jetty every time they launch or return from a rescue mission.  Update:  Smith Point Sea Rescue was forced to move their boat as they could not guarantee access to Bay due to shoaling.  Many of their calls are right outside of the Little Wicomico Jetty at Smith Point due to the confluence of waters and weather on the Bay.  They have now relocated 10 miles away when minutes matter for marine rescues
• Economic loss from boat services and repairs because they can no longer navigate through the dangerous shoaling to the marinas on the Little Wicomico River-Marinas report decline in business
• Chesapeake Bay ecology, with critical fish habitats at risk as water flow reduces-less water flow for the extensive oyster operations which contribute to Chesapeake Bay water filtering

Why Your Voice Matters
Federal and state dredging programs only act when there is clear proof of public demand. Other Virginia waterways have secured funds through strong citizen advocacy—and we can too! Local stakeholders have been sounding the alarm about severe shoaling at the Little Wicomico River Jetty since before 2021. Today, the crisis can no longer be ignored.

By showing strong, visible support, we give our government and elected officials the backing they need to secure funding and restore this vital waterway.  This project will be submitted for State and Federal funding in 2026.  Please sign the petition today and write your government and elected officials.  

This fight is about more than navigation—it’s about:
✅ Protecting lives and public safety
✅ Preserving local jobs and livelihoods
✅ Honoring Chesapeake Bay heritage
✅ Safeguarding vital ecosystems

✍️ Take Action
Your signature is your voice!  Let our government stakeholders and elected officials know this is important to you.  

👉 Sign this petition today to demand dredging of the Little Wicomico Jetty.

Make your voice heard—and spread the word. Please sign and then share this petition link with your family, friends, and networks. Every signature—and every share—helps build the momentum needed for dredging the Little Wicomico River Jetty.

The time is NOW—before this historic waterway is lost to shoaling forever.  Together, we can restore safe access to the Chesapeake Bay.