The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Buffalo District has completed hands-on assessments of federal navigation structures across Great Lakes harbors to document their condition, identify potential repair needs and help guide future maintenance funding decisions.
Annual Operational Condition Assessments examine breakwaters, jetties and piers that help protect navigation channels and provide safer access to harbors for vessels ranging from recreational boats to 1,000-foot freighters. The assessments are part of the district’s navigation mission, which supports the Great Lakes Navigation System—an interconnected web of commerce supporting $36 billion in economic activity and more than 241,000 jobs around the world.
Looking closely at critical infrastructure
Assessment teams include personnel from the Buffalo District’s Operations, Coastal Engineering and Project Management sections. The teams inspect the full length of navigation structures in 31 harbors by land or boat, documenting their observations with photographs and collaborating on assigning standardized condition ratings.
“We’re all talking about what we’re seeing together, discussing it, and essentially trying to make a judgment as to whether the existing ratings adequately reflect the condition in the field,” said Paul Bijhouwer, a Buffalo District coastal engineer and member of the assessment team.
They examine whether structures have maintained their designed shape, whether materials such as stone, concrete and steel show signs of deterioration, and whether the structures continue to serve their intended navigation purpose.
The work gives the district a consistent, repeatable way to evaluate navigation infrastructure across its entire area of responsibility, now with dedicated federal Operations and Maintenance funding for comprehensive annual assessments beginning in 2026.
“We’ve always laid eyes on our structures and maintained a catalog of conditions, but the Great Lakes Navigation Team decided to specifically fund inspections and dedicate resources to ensure they were being completed,” said Bijhouwer.
Turning observations into information
Not every assessment finds a structure in perfect condition.
By documenting deterioration, shifting stone, changes in alignment or other observable conditions early, the district can better plan for repairs and help prevent smaller concerns from becoming larger navigation problems.
The teams use standardized structural and functional condition ratings. Structural ratings describe the physical condition of a structure. Functional ratings indicate whether it continues to perform its authorized purpose, such as protecting a harbor entrance or supporting safe vessel access.
While most of this year’s assessments confirmed previously assigned ratings, some identified a need for future attention.
The team observed that some portions of Conneaut Harbor’s East Breakwater had lost crest elevation and sustained damage to their side slopes, affecting the structure’s condition rating.
Other assessments highlighted the value of recent repair work.
Cleveland Harbor’s West Pier underwent $7.2 million in fully federally funded repairs from 2024 through 2025. The work encased 1,320 feet of the pier in new concrete held in place with steel sheet pile. With a design life of 50 years, it is expected to receive high ratings in the formal assessment report.
USACE has been committed to the success of this repair project as it ensures the future of some of Cleveland’s best recreational resources. (U.S. Army photo by Andre' M. Hampton) View original
None of the structures assessed this year had any damage or deterioration deserving a failed rating.
With field assessments complete, the team will submit its findings to the Corps of Engineers’ Coastal Navigation System Database. The internal database serves as a national benchmark for evaluating infrastructure conditions and validating maintenance needs.
That information helps Corps of Engineers Headquarters assess funding requests from districts and prioritize repair investments across the country as part of a risk-based asset-management strategy. An assessment does not guarantee that a project will receive funding, but complete and defensible condition data helps ensure local infrastructure needs are considered in national maintenance decisions.
Local assessments with regional value
Federal navigation structures face demanding conditions across the Great Lakes, including waves, weather, ice and changing water levels. Maintaining breakwaters, jetties and piers helps preserve safe harbor access while also providing a measure of shoreline protection from erosion and wave action.
The annual assessment process works in tandem with the multi-district Breakwater Assessment Team, which conducts more targeted, in-depth evaluations of areas of specific concern across the Great Lakes region.
For the Buffalo District, the Operational Condition Assessments provide the foundation for proactive infrastructure stewardship: seeing conditions firsthand, documenting them consistently and supporting sound maintenance decisions.
With the 2026 assessment cycle complete, the information gathered at each harbor will help the Buffalo District and the Corps of Engineers continue maintaining the navigation infrastructure that connects Great Lakes communities to regional, national and global commerce.
Photos, video and B-roll of Operational Condition Assessments are available at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/buffalousace/albums/72177720335795769
This information includes elements of AI-generated content, which were reviewed and edited by relevant DoW personnel to verify appropriateness and compliance with DoW policies and guidance.
The Buffalo District delivers world-class engineering solutions to the Great Lakes region, the Army and the nation to ensure national security, environmental sustainability, water resource management and emergency assistance during peace and war. Learn more at www.lrd.usace.army.mil/buffalo.
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