Great Lakes

Great Lakes Urge Override of Vetoed Water Bill

The Great Lakes shipping industry is calling on Congress to override President Bush's veto of legislation that will accelerate dredging and authorize construction of a second Poe-sized Lock at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. These provisions and others benefitting the Lakes are included in the Water Resources Development Act of 2007 recently vetoed by the President. The Water Resources Development Act of 2007 (H.R. 1495) was passed by wide margins in both the House and Senate. Lack of adequate dredging reportedly is forcing the largest U.S.-Flag vessels on the Lakes to lose 6,000 tons of cargo each trip. A second Poe-sized Lock at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, is one of the most important infrastructure improvements on the Great Lakes in decades. Reportedly 70 percent of U.S.-Flag carrying capacity is restricted to the Poe Lock, and if that lock were incapacitated, the U.S.-Flag Great Lakes fleet would not be able to meet the needs of commerce. Great Lakes Maritime Task Force was founded in Toledo, Ohio, in 1992 to promote domestic and international shipping on the Great Lakes. With 73 members, it is the largest coalition to ever speak for the Great Lakes shipping community and draws its membership from both labor and management representing U.S.-Flag vessel operators, shipboard and longshore unions, port authorities, cargo shippers, terminal operators, shipyards and other Great Lakes interests

Study to Explore Separating Great Lakes and Mississippi Basin

According to reports, a growing number of scientists, advocacy groups and public officials believe that it's time for man to think seriously about separating the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins. It may be the best way, they say, to stop the spread of invasive species between the basins. The Alliance for the Great Lakes has launched the first study. With $125,000 in funding from the Great Lakes Fishery Trust, Great Lakes Fishery Commission and the US-Canada International Joint

Dedication & Delivery Ceremony of New USGS Vessels

Two 17-knot high-speed research vessels for the U.S. Geological Survey are to be dedicated at Great Lakes Shipyard, Cleveland, Ohio, on Wednesday, August 31, 2011. R/V KAHO and R/V MUSKIE will replace two of the USGS’s oldest research vessels by the same names that are currently operating on Lake Ontario and Lake Erie, respectively.  The USCG’s five-vessel fleet supports missions that collect and analyze oceanographic and fisheries information.

NY Power Authority’s Havasu II to be Christened

The New York Power Authority’s newly constructed pedestal crane barge will be christened at Great Lakes Shipyard, Cleveland, Ohio.  The christening ceremony will take place on Thursday, September 23, 2010, beginning at 11 a.m.  The barge will be utilized for deployment and retrieval of an ice boom placed across the Niagara River at Buffalo New York to prevent ice from blocking the hydro-electric water intakes of the New York Power Authority.  

GLMRI to Receive $2M in Federal Funding

The Great Lakes Maritime Research Institute (GLMRI), a joint effort by the University of Wisconsin-Superior and the University of Minnesota Duluth, will receive $2 million in federal funding. This is the second year of funding for the GLMRI collaboration, which now totals $2.75 million. Congressman James L. Oberstar (MN-8) secured the original authorization for the initiative, and Congressman Obey secured the funding in the recently-passed transportation appropriations bill.

Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur Christens Tugboat

Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, Representative of Northern Ohio’s Ninth Congressional District, was the Sponsor and Principal Speaker for the naming ceremony for the tugboat HANDY-THREE at Great Lakes Shipyard. “She is here today because of her sponsorship and commitment to small shipyards,” remarked Ron Rasmus, President, The Great Lakes Group.  Kaptur has championed the passage and funding of the Assistance to Small Shipyards Grant Program which makes grants for capital

Rolls-Royce to Upgrade Dorothy Ann

Rolls-Royce Commercial Marine has been contracted to upgrade Interlake Steamship Company’s Tug Dorothy Ann.  The 124-foot, 7,200-horsepower Z-drive tug is the largest Z-drive ATB tug built to date in North America and is mated to the barge Pathfinder.  The duo is engaged in hauling bulk commodities on the Great Lakes.   The upgrade will convert the Dorothy Ann’s Rolls-Royce/Ulstien azimuth thrusters from fixed-pitch to controllable-pitch propellers

Largest Potential Lakes Project in Generation

Congress is considering the possible funding of the construction of a new lock at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, a half-billion dollar undertaking that would rank as the largest navigation infrastructure project on the Great Lakes in a generation. Construction of a new lock at “the Soo” would bring up to 250 jobs annually to northern Michigan and continue for a decade.  Estimated cost of the lock is about $475m

Miller Showcases New Welding Equipment

Miller Electric Mfg. Co. will showcase a wide range of new and popular welding products, technologies and safety accessories at the FABTECH 2010 show at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, November 2 – 4. Miller’s booth this year (#6811 in Hall C) will provide attendees with product selection clarity by featuring market specific solutions designed to address the specific needs and challenges of the manufacturing, fabrication, shipbuilding

Great Lakes' Biggest Dual-Mode ITB Begins Service

One of the most labor- and fuel-efficient bulk material carriers on the Great Lakes entered service in June 2000. The self-unloading barge Great Lakes Trader is owned by Great Lakes Marine Leasing, Portland, Ore., and operated by VanEnkevort Tug and Barge, Bark River, Mich. The 740 x 78 ft. (226 x 24 m) Trader is the largest vessel capable of fitting through the St. Lawrence Seaway locks. Combined with the 10,200-bhp (7,600 bkW) tug Joyce L