Icebreaking Tug Delivered to NY Power Authority
A new icebreaking tugboat built by Blount Boats in Rhode Island has been delivered to the New York Power Authority (NYPA) to work in the Niagara River to help alleviate shoreline flooding and reduce the likelihood of ice limiting the power production at large hydro plants along the Niagara River. The Breaker II joins a fleet of three boats that work every winter to install the Lake Erie—Niagara River Ice Boom—a series of 22 spans of steel pontoons that straddle the mouth of the…
Blount to Build Icebreaking Tug for NYPA
Rhode Island shipbuilder Blount Boats said it has signed a contract with the nation’s largest state power organization to construct an icebreaking, all-welded-steel, diesel-powered, double screw tugboat.The new vessel for the New York Power Authority (NYPA) will be built to operate in seasonal ice near the entrance to and within the upper Niagara River. This vessel will replace existing vessels in the NYPA fleet currently used for the installation, removal, and maintenance of…
Great Lakes Shipyard to Build Two Tugs for NYPA
The Great Lakes Shipyard in Cleveland, Ohio, has been contracted by New York Power Authority (NYPA) to build and deliver two new tugboats for the Niagara Power Plant’s winter operations in Buffalo, N.Y. The new tugs will augment and replace aging vessels that are used for the installation, removal and maintenance of the Lake Erie-Niagara River Ice Boom and various associated marine construction projects. The new tugs will be specially reinforced with heavy stems and shell reinforcement for operations in seasonal ice.
No Discharge Zone Declared in Lake Erie
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation today declared the New York side of the Lake Erie shore line a “no discharge zone,” which means that boats are completely banned from discharging sewage into the water. The EPA reviewed the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s proposal to establish a no discharge zone for the lake and determined that there are adequate facilities in the area for boats to pump out their sewage. Boaters must now dispose of their sewage at one of the lake’s specially-designated pump-out stations. This action is part of a joint EPA and New York State strategy to eliminate the discharge of sewage from boats into the state’s waterways.
Great Lakes Coast Guard Rescue 9
Coast Guard and Coast Guard Auxiliary crews across the Great Lakes rescued 9 people during multiple cases from different locations across the Coast Guard 9th District Saturday. The names of those rescued are not being released and there is no imagery or video for any of the cases. Among other cases, watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Buffalo, New York, received a report just after 10:30 a.m. of two people in the water near Lock 5 in the Oswego River in Oswego, New York, during a kayaking event. A Coast Guard Auxiliary crew was in the area doing a safety patrol for the event. The crew and a local fire department boat retrieved both of the people from the water and took them to shore. It is unknown if they were wearing life jackets and there were no injuries or medical concerns reported.
