Dredging: Keeping the Mississippi Open
“Not only does the top of the river move, but the bottom of the river also moves.” - James Bodron, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mississippi Valley Division, Regional Business Director.Dredging was the Herculean act that allowed much of the U.S. economy to keep chugging along as usual, at least for Midwest and Central states, as drought conditions threatened to shut down river traffic on the Mississippi River and its tributaries, during fall and winter 2022 and early 2023.The full scope of these U.S.
Getting the Work Right: Coordinating Money, Time and Big Projects
I. MoneyNo one ever said it’s easy to understand federal budgets and spending plans. Nevertheless, a general sense of clarity and straightforwardness is critical for any review of public expenditures. This becomes more pressing when tracking revenue and expenditures linked to specific users’ fees, such as the $0.29/gallon fuel tax, paid by inland waterways operators. In 2021, the Inland Waterways Trust Fund (IWTF) held $221.5 million, money earmarked to build, maintain and operate…
Inland Waterways Report: Columbia-Snake River System
It’s amazing to consider that a commercial vessel in the Pacific Ocean, approaching the mouth of the Columbia River, can continue its eastward journey to finally tie up at the Port of Lewiston, in Lewiston, Idaho, America’s most inland West Coast port, 465 miles from the Pacific Ocean.The Columbia and Snake Rivers form that critical east-west waterway, an economic powerhouse regionally, nationally and internationally. According to the Pacific Northwest Waterways Association (PNWA)…
US Inland Waterway Infrastructure: Riding a Good News Wave
The inland waterways have enjoyed several positive developments toward modernization of the system, particularly over the last two years.Annual appropriations that fund the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Civil Works mission have been steadily on the rise for the last nine fiscal years, specifically the Construction and Operations & Maintenance (O&M) accounts have been funded at historic levels. The passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) in 2021 provided a…
WISTA Meeting Emphasizes Infrastructure Investment
At its Annual General Meeting in New Orleans last week, members of WISTA USA (Women’s International Shipping &Trading Association) were urged to support investment in infrastructure projects in order to maintain and grow the transportation of waterborne commerce in the United States. From U.S. Senator David Vitter (R-La.) to Spencer Murphy of Canal Barge Company, Rick Calhoun of Cargill, Gary LaGrange of the Port of New Orleans, Joel Dupre of Southern Recycling and Colonel Richard Hansen of the U.S.
