Sitka is served by three tug and barge lines that transport goods to and from Sitka. In addition, other marine transportation lines based in Alaska, Prince Rupert, BC Canada, and Seattle, Washington frequent Alaska waters with marine transportation equipment. Silver Bay is deep enough to accommodate the draft of a barge, bulk-carrier ship or tanker ship. There are three principal ways to move bulk water from Sitka: (1) The use of a barge configured to hold potable water such as a flat-bed barge with a water bladder, (2) a general bulk-carrier ship fitted with water bladders within the holds of the ship, or (3) a tanker ship configured to hold potable water.

Bottled water shipments to China and other Pacific Rim nations will be expedited by the new Prince Rupert container port.

Loading of Water

At the moment, there is no existing dock or mooring dolphin suitable for holding a ship for the purpose of loading water. However, the Sawmill Cove Board of Directors is actively planning new dock facilities using a phased development approach. Phase 1 consists of the construction of a rock fill, sheet pile dock with high-energy fender system and Phase 2 includes the addition of 8 mooring dolphins and catwalks configured to berth vessels up to 1,000 feet in length.

Access to the Blue Lake aqueduct is less than 2,000 feet from the shore-side dock site and a large diameter water line between the aqueduct and the dock is now complete and ready to load water. Click here to learn more about the pipeline.

Port Security Plan

The Sawmill Cove Board of Directors has retained a consultant to develop a port security plan for the industrial park. This will allow foreign-flagged vessels such as bulk water ships or fish transport freighters to berth at Sawmill Cove.