Marine pile driving in Jupiter

Who needs pile driving

Owners building a new dock or lift slip, adding mooring piles, or replacing failed pilings.

Half the waterway stays open

Jupiter keeps a centreline channel of 50% of the waterway width unobstructed, or at least 15 ft where that is impossible, and allows only rectangular, T and L docks unless the Director approves another shape. Piles for docks and lifts are laid out against that channel line first.

We order and drive piles to that rule.[1]

Manatee zones on the river

Jupiter's waters are in Palm Beach County's manatee protection zones under state rule 68C-22.009. Pile driving and seawall work on the Loxahatchee and the Intracoastal follow the 50 ft shutdown rule and use turbidity curtains that cannot entangle a manatee.

Pile driving stops whenever a manatee comes within 50 ft, so watchers are posted.[2][3]

Two aquatic preserves meet at Jupiter

The Loxahatchee River-Lake Worth Creek Aquatic Preserve (1,800 acres, 1970) borders Jupiter and Tequesta, and the Jensen Beach to Jupiter Inlet Aquatic Preserve (23,000 acres) has been Outstanding Florida Waters since 1979. On those waters the state dock exemption falls to 500 sq ft, and SFWMD approval is needed for structures in natural waterways.

Barges and spuds are kept off grass beds.[4][5][6][7]

What makes Jupiter different

Town Code 27-2626 keeps half of every waterway clear: a centreline channel of 50% of the waterway width must stay unobstructed, or at least a 15 ft channel where that cannot be met. Only rectangular, T and L shaped docks are allowed unless the Planning and Zoning Director approves another shape.[1]

Who approves what

The Town's checklists ask for FDEP self-certification or exemption verification, Army Corps approval if not included in the DEP decision, and SFWMD approval for structures on submerged lands or in natural waterways such as the Loxahatchee River, the Intracoastal Waterway and Sawfish Bay.[7][8]

Permits in Jupiter

• Town of Jupiter Building and Planning and Zoning: Marine structure permits; dock waivers under Town Code 27-2626.
• Florida DEP or South Florida Water Management District: FDEP self-certification or exemption verification for canal docks; SFWMD approval for structures in the Loxahatchee River, the Intracoastal and Sawfish Bay.
• US Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District: Army Corps approval where the FDEP decision does not include it, as the Town checklists note.

Rules that shape pile work

Under SPGP VI, impact-hammer installation of metal pipe or metal sheet piles was not authorised, so steel piles needed a separate federal review. All in-water work stops when a manatee comes within 50 ft and restarts once it has moved beyond 50 ft or 30 minutes pass without it reappearing; project vessels run at idle speed and no wake.[12][3]

Frequently asked questions