NATIONAL PARK, N.J. -- After more than two decades of debate and lawsuits, on Monday an Army Corps of Engineers dredge contractor carved away the first loads of silt in a $310 million project to deepen the Delaware River shipping channel.

But minutes after the dredging pipe was scheduled to bite into the river bottom, New Jersey's governor vowed to push on with a fight against the deepening, saying the work "makes no sense economically and it is dangerous environmentally."

Gov. Chris Christie made the remark as Delaware officials conceded that the first section of the dredging project would begin without a state permit.

"At this point, the priorities are having the discussions between the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control and the corps to minimize the environmental impact of this project," said Brian Selander, Gov. Jack Markell's chief strategy officer.

A coalition of environmental groups led by the Delaware Riverkeeper Network also filed a federal lawsuit in Trenton to stop the project. That same group is now also fighting the corps' request to shift the case to Delaware.

"The deepening is the poster child for an environmental and taxpayer boondoggle" said David Pringle, who directs the New Jersey Environmental Federation.