Arkansas River News

Salvage crews worked to lift the first piece of Baltimore's collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge from the water on Saturday to allow barges and tugboats to access the disaster site, Maryland and U.S. officials said, the first step in a complex effort to reopen the city's blocked port.The steel truss bridge collapsed early on Tuesday morning, killing six road workers, when a massive container ship lost power and crashed into a support pylon. Much of the span crashed into the Patapsco River…

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) announced over $653 million to fund 41 port improvement projects across the nation under the Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP).The investments—part of the largest dedicated funding for ports and waterways in history, nearly $17 billion through the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—are intended to help grow capacity and increase efficiency at coastal seaports, Great Lakes ports and inland…

The House Committee on Appropriations approved by a vote of 34-24 the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 Energy and Water Development (E&W) Appropriations Bill. Included in the bill are Community Project Funding (CPF) requests for Inland Waterways Trust Fund (IWTF) construction projects.Overall proposed funding for Corps’ Civil Works is $9.57 billion, an increase of $910 million above FY23’s appropriated level, and $2.16 billion above the President’s FY24 budget request.FY24 funding for construction projects on the inland waterways is $455.97 million…

U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced more than $703 million to fund 41 projects in 22 states and one territory that designed to help improve port facilities through the Maritime Administration’s Port Infrastructure Development Program. Following is the full list of FY 2022 Port Infrastructure Development Grant Awards:ALASKANorth Extension Stabilization Step 1 Project ($68,700,000), Anchorage, AlaskaThe Project will reconfigure and realign the shoreline within the “North Extension” (the area north of the existing general cargo terminals) at the Port of Alaska in Anchorage, Alaska.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation, the largest provider of dredging services in the United States, on Wednesday announced the receipt of several major dredging awards totaling $143.5 million with open options pending award of $102.9 million.The awarded work includes:South Atlantic Division Regional Harbor Dredging 2023 Project (Maintenance, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, $26.6 million)Fire Island Inlet to Montauk Point, Contract 2 Project (Coastal Protection, New York…

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…

New federal money promises dramatic impacts throughout the United States’ inland waterways system in 2022 and beyond. This report focuses on America’s central rivers; the Western rivers will be covered in a future report. These central rivers reach 11,000 miles, from Pennsylvania to Florida and from Texas to South Dakota.Consider the money within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers “Civil Works Program Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), 2022 Construction Spend Plan.”In Arkansas…

The U.S. Army on Wednesday announced  the Civil Works studies, projects and programs that the Corps would implement in Fiscal Year 2022 with the $22.81 billion in supplemental funding provided in two recently enacted laws — the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act; and the 2022 Disaster Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act.The spend plan supports the Administration hitting the ground running by focusing on current Fiscal Year 2022 spending. Future announcements will provide spend plans for subsequent years.

Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI) applauded approval by the House Appropriations Committee (by a vote of 33 to 24) of strong funding for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22). The Committee provided overall funding for the Corps’ Civil Works Mission for FY22 at $8.66 billion, an increase of $863 million above FY21’s appropriated level, and $1.9 billion above the President’s FY22 budget request.“WCI is pleased that the House Appropriations Committee has increased funding for the Corps of Engineers’ critical work…

The U.S.’ first linehaul towing vessel powered by Tier 4 Caterpillar high-speed engines with selective catalytic reduction( SCR) was built by Blakeley BoatWorks (BBW) and is now operated by Cooper Marine and Timberlands (CMT).In March 2021, Blakeley BoatWorks completed construction of M/V Gretchen V. Cooper, a state-of-the-art, Tier-4 inland linehaul tow boat. This 3,400-horsepower vessel is 110-feet long, 33-feet wide, and expands CMT’s fleet to 20 vessels.Currently, Tier-4 diesel engine standards are the strictest U.S.

According to a report on WeatherChannel.com, a pair of barges broke free and hit Lock and Dam 16 on the flooded Arkansas River on Thursday, May 23, 2019, north of Webber Falls, Oklahoma.Early reports citing the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said there did not appear to be any damage to the lock.The barges broke loose from the Port of Muskogee and passed under the Highway 62 bridge without hitting anything, KOTV reported. (Sources: WeatherChannel.com, Oklahoma Higway Patrol & KOTV)

Bryan Day, executive director of the Little Rock Port Authority, weighs in on President Donald Trump’s proposed infrastructure plan, calling for U.S. policymakers to consider inland waterways and ports in America’s infrastructure plan. President Donald Trump and members of Congress continue to discuss plans for a major infrastructure spending plan for our country. With calls from leaders from across the country, members of the federal government are coming together to embrace the importance of maintaining America’s infrastructure.

Congressman French Hill (AR-2) joined Mayor Mark Stodola to celebrate the official announcement of the a $6.185M TIGER grant awarded by the US Department of Transportation to the Little Rock Port Authority. The funds will be used to support the Little Rock Port Authority Growth Initiative to construct improvements to the existing slackwater harbor area, including a new dock with direct dock-to-rail capability; and add new rail storage. “We are celebrating today because getting a TIGER grant is a big deal,” said Congressman French Hill. “The Little Rock Port Authority through the leadership of our board of directors and staff have helped mold the Little Rock Port Authority into an economic engine for our central Arkansas economy, said Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola. U.S.

Weather Channel Forecasters are predicting a “near-average” hurricane season for 2016, but warn that an average season does not mean businesses and residents shouldn’t prepare for the worst. While it is unclear whether the season, which began June 1, will bring about a few mild storms or a catastrophic Category 5 hurricane, one thing is for sure: safety and preparation are on the radars of the owners and operators of brownwater vessels. Although forecasters consider this year’s predicted 12 named storms “average”…

The Port of Little Rock has reported 73,000 net tons of total barge tonnage in May. Dock activities compared favorably over the previous year with Logistic Services, Inc. (LSI) handling 228 barges during the first five months of the year. 350,000 net tons of various commodities moved across the docks at the port. Cargoes handled across the docks included potash, sulfate, triple phosphate, urea, rock and sand, wetcake, bauxite, lightweight aggregate, wire rod coils, aluminum ingots, aluminum tee and sows, scrap and steel coils.

After more than two years of phased construction, officials at the Tulsa Port of Catoosa formally dedicated their nearly $12 million dock renovation project Tuesday. Featured speakers for the dedication ceremony were Chip Jaenichen, Administrator for United States Maritime Administration; Gary Ridley, Oklahoma Secretary of Transportation; Michael Patterson, Executive Director for the Oklahoma Department of Transportation; and Bob Portiss, Port Director of the City of Tulsa-Rogers County Port Authority…

The U.S. Coast Guard has issued a number of river closures, restrictions and advisories in response to floods in the Midwest and South. Illinois River is open to traffic. The Coast Guard recommends that mariners transit the river in daylight hours only. The Missouri River is open to vessel traffic. The Coast Guard urges mariners to monitor VHF-FM channels 16 and 22 for any changes to the river. For more details on the closures set in place by Sector Upper Mississippi River call the command center at 314-269-2610. The Paducah-Louisville railroad bridge at mile marker 94.8 on Green River requires one-hour notice for opening. The Louisville-Nashville Swing Bridge at mile marker 190.4 on Cumberland River is closed. A safety advisory is in place from mile marker 110 to mile marker 0.

The Coast Guard has issued a number of river closures, restrictions and advisories in response to floods in the midwest. To keep the public and professional mariners apprised of changes to river traffic, the 8th District will continue to issue press releases capturing all closures and restrictions throughout this period of high water and flooding. * The Coast Guard Captain of the Port has re-opened the Mississippi River surrounding the St. Louis Harbor from mile marker 179 to mile marker 185. Vessels operating in this area must be in compliance with horsepower and barge restrictions in accordance with the Western Rivers Waterways Action Plan. * Illinois River is open to traffic. The Coast Guard recommends that mariners transit the river in daylight hours only.

The Associated Press reported that barge traffic has ceased on the Arkansas River after damage was discovered on a bridge in western Arkansas. Officials say bridge inspectors will assess the damage and arrange repairs accordingly. Until then, rail traffic will also be diverted until the bridge is fixed.   Sources: AP, staff

The Coast Guard is responding to a fender allision involving the 23-meter motor vessel Bill Rodgers and the Interstate 30 bridge at mile marker 118.5 on the Arkansas River, Thursday. Coast Guard Sector Lower Mississippi River watchstanders received a report from the vessel operator at 3:20 p.m. reporting that while pushing eight empty barges, the tug Bill Rodgers allided with the north fender system. The Coast Guard immediately dispatched its marine inspection and investigation teams to the scene to assess damage and determine the cause of the incident. The I-30 bridge was shut down to traffic in order to allow the Arkansas State Police and the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management teams to conduct a damage assessment. The bridge has since been reopened.

After assessing more than 700 project applications equaling about $10.2 billion, the U.S. Department of Transportation today announced that 47 projects in 34 states and the District of Columbia will receive a total of $485.3 million in its fourth round of TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) infrastructure grant awards. Of the 47 capital project funding requests selected for awards, eight go directly to America’s port-related infrastructure. These eight project grants total more than $79 million, or about 16 percent of the capital grant funds available. “In his Fast Lane blog this week, Sec. LaHood reiterated the Obama administration’s ‘deep commitment’ to investing in our ports and marine highways to create jobs and keep American goods moving to markets.

Ingram Industries Inc. of Nashville, Tennessee, and Pine Bluff Sand and Gravel Co. of Pine Bluff, Arkansas, announced today they have entered into an agreement for Ingram to sell its Ingram Materials LLC subsidiary to Pine Bluff. Ingram Materials is one of the nation’s premier producers of fine aggregate used by the construction industry for concrete, asphalt and masonry projects in Middle Tennessee, Western Kentucky and Northern Alabama. Ingram Materials operates three sand dredges on the Ohio River in Paducah, Kentucky, and has distribution facilities in Nashville, Clarksville and New Johnsonville, Tennessee; Paducah, Kentucky; and Decatur and Florence, Alabama. The Ingram Materials business was first established in 1927 by other owners who called it the Ohio River Sand Company.

A diverse group of 30 members of the National Waterways Alliance – representing all segments of the water resources community nationwide – met with the Council on Environmental Quality to discuss the proposed revisions to the Principles and Standards governing the planning and development of water resources projects. Recognizing that reliable, well maintained water resources infrastructure is critical to our nation’s economic vitality and environmental well-being, the Alliance sought to offer constructive suggestions to the proposal to ensure a viable, long-term planning mechanism. Highlights of the session included a presentation by Dr.