Lakes Limestone 2014 Tonnage Dips
Shipments from U.S. ports dipped 4 percent, but loadings out of Canadian quarries rose 12.5 percent.
Shipments of limestone on the Great Lakes totaled 27.1 million tons in 2014, a decrease of 1.8 percent from 2013 and a drop of 2.1 percent compared to the trade’s long-term average.
The decline Lakeswide largely reflects the significant delays in resuming shipments in the spring. Heavy ice formations covered the Lakes and loadings in April were down nearly 50 percent. Even in May shipments lagged the previous year by 8 percent.
U.S. ports:
Calcite, MI, Cedarville, MI, Drummond Island, MI, Kellys Island, OH, Marblehead, OH, Port Inland, MI and Presque Isle, MI. Kellys Island ceased shipping in fall 2009.
Canadian ports: Bruce Mines, Manitoulin Island and Smelter Bay (all Ontario).
A total of 17 American companies operate 56 U.S.-flag vessels on the Great Lakes and carry raw materials such as iron ore and fluxstone for the steel industry, aggregate and cement for the construction industry, coal for power generation, as well as salt, sand and grain. Collectively, these vessels can transport more than 115 million tons of cargo per year.