Candice Miller News

Too few icebreakers and lack of a second Poe-sized lock threaten shipping on the Great Lakes and St. Insufficient U.S. and Canadian icebreakers and reliance on a single Poe-sized lock to connect Lake Superior to the Lower Lakes and Seaway threaten the future of shipping on America’s Fourth Sea Coast warns Great Lakes Maritime Task Force (GLMTF) in its 2015 Annual Report released today. “Another near arctic winter significantly impacted navigation, and then a 20-day closure of…

Prospects for ending the dredging crisis and resolving other pressing issues on the Great Lakes are the best in 12 years according to Lake Carriers’ Association (LCA), the trade association representing U.S.-flag vessel operators on the inland seas, in its State of the Lakes report issued today. Only uniform, Federal regulation of ballast water remains elusive, particularly since Canada has yet to issue its ballast water regulations. According to LCA, the greatest progress has been made on the dredging crisis. Just a few years ago more than 18 million cubic yards of sediment clogged ports and waterways and the backlog was projected to grow. Now, the backlog is down to approximately 17 million cubic yards and shrinking.

U.S.-flag Great Lakes freighters (lakers) moved 6.7 million tons of dry-bulk cargo on the Great Lakes in April, a decrease of nearly 6 percent when compared to the month’s 5-year average. Another brutal winter again spawned heavy ice formations Lakeswide that slowed the vessels that were put into service and delayed others’ sail date. With five of the six U.S. iron ore loading ports on Lake Superior, it follows that the iron ore trade was most affected by the ice fields. Shipments totaled 3.4 million tons, a decrease of 10 percent compared to the month’s 5-year average.

Shipments of limestone on the Great Lakes totaled 1.8 million tons in April, a decrease of 9 percent compared to the month’s five-year average, and a drop of 30 percent compared to 2012, the last April in which ice conditions were not near arctic, according to the Lake Carriers’ Association (LCA). Heavy ice cover on the Lakes was the major factor behind the decreases. The ice formations were so formidable that the U.S.-flag Class V lakers that are heavily engaged in the stone trade collectively delayed their sailings by 60 days compared to 2014. Class V lakers are vessels that range in length from 600 to 649 feet and can transit rivers such as the Cuyahoga in Cleveland or the Saginaw River in Michigan. Cold temperatures also slowed the resumption of mining at several quarries.

Shipments of iron ore on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway totaled 4.3 million tons in April, nearly 15 percent below the month’s long-term average, the Lake Carriers’ Association (LCA) reported. The heavy ice blanketing the Lakes not only slowed the vessels that were in service, it delayed many vessels from sailing. Several U.S.-flag vessel operators held back ships rather than sit in ice because the U.S. and Canadian Coast Guards do not have enough icebreakers to adequately cover the system. “April was again proof positive that we need more icebreaking resources,” said James H.I. Weakley, president of LCA, the trade association representing U.S.-flag vessel operators on the Great Lakes.

The Guarding Our Great Lakes Act, a bipartisan legislation designed to protect the Great Lakes from the threat of invasive Asian carp, has been introduced by U.S. Congressman Dave Camp (R-Mich.), Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.). Additional cosponsors of the bill include Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Carl Levin (D-Mich.), Congresswoman Candice Miller (R-Mich.) and Congressman Gary Peters (D-Mich.). In 2012, Rep. Camp and Sen. Stabenow secured passage of the Stop Invasive Species Act, to expedite the Great Lakes Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) being conducted by the Army Corps of Engineers, which was supposed to formulate a plan to prevent Asian carp from reaching the Great Lakes.

Last week, the Transportation Security Administration began nationwide implementation of a program that reforms the burdensome process by which mariners and other transportation workers receive required Transportation Worker Identification Credentials (TWIC). The TWIC OneVisit program eliminates the requirement that workers make two trips to a TWIC enrollment center to pick up and then activate their TWIC. Under the new, streamlined process, a mariner can apply for a TWIC at an enrollment center and opt to receive the credential by mail.

There has been a lot of speculation of late that the gargantuan ice fields covering the Lakes this winter will, when they finally melt, raise water levels significantly and ships will carry more cargo each trip. That is, frankly, very far from certain. First, water levels are devilishly hard to predict. For example, in May of 2012 the water level on Lake Michigan/Huron was predicted to be as high as 8 inches above long term average (LTA) by October, but when autumn rolled around, Michigan/Huron was actually eight inches below LTA. Second, since the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) rarely gets enough money to keep up with the natural rate of siltation (3.3 million cubic yards per year)…

On November 8, speaking at the Port of New Orleans, President Obama said “… corn and wheat is coming down from my home state of Illinois down the river, ending up here and then going all around the world. This was a victory for the inland waterways industry because while the President has recognized ports, dams, levees, trains, trucks and other transportation infrastructure, he has not, heretofore, underscored the value of the inland waterways. The President’s recognition of the…

SEAS Act to Repeal Section 100124 of Highway Bill. U.S. Representatives Elijah E. Cummings (D, MD-07) and Jeff Landry (R, LA-03) today introduced the Saving Essential American Sailors (SEAS) Act, H.R. 6170, which would ensure American food aid is transported by American workers. The bill repeals Section 100124 of the highway bill, MAP-21. Additional original co-sponsors include Congress members Nick Rahall (D, WV-03), Rick Larsen (D, WA-02), Bennie Thompson (D, MS-02), Colleen Hanabusa (D…

Working to create and preserve American jobs, Congressmen Elijah E. Cummings (D, MD-7) and Jeff Landry (R, LA-3) today introduced the American Mariners Job Protection Act (H.R. 3202), a bill with bipartisan support that will increase government transparency surrounding the issuance of waivers allowing non-Jones Act-qualified vessels to carry cargo between U.S. ports. Under current law, when the head of the agency responsible for the administration of the Jones Act believes it necessary to waive the Act’s requirements in the interest of national defense, the agency must request the Maritime Administration to assess whether Jones Act-qualified vessels are available to carry the cargo under consideration.

A commitment to ending the dredging crisis on the Great Lakes has earned Congresswoman Candice Miller (R-MI) an award as 2011 Great Lakes Legislator of the Year from the largest labor/management coalition representing workers and industries dependent on shipping on America’s Fourth Sea Coast. Rep. Miller, who represents Michigan’s 10th District in the House of Representatives, will formally receive the award from Great Lakes Maritime Task orce (“GLMTF”) in Washington on February 9.

Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox said he is extremely disappointed that the United States Supreme Court declined to immediately close Chicago-area locks that could stop Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes, but is pleased that Michigan's fight to reopen the Chicago Diversion case will continue. Cox also said President Obama, who failed to respond to Cox's previous request for an Asian carp conference, must now act and use his powers to close the locks because Asian carp eDNA continues to turn up near Lake Michigan. "I am extremely disappointed the Supreme Court did not push the pause button on this crisis until an effective plan is in place," said Cox.

Marinette Marine Corporation, a division of Manitowoc Marine Group, is scheduled to launch the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Hollyhock (WLB-214) on Saturday, January 25, at its shipyard located on the Menominee River in Marinette, Wis. Class seagoing buoy tenders being built by Marinette Marine Corporation. navigation. response, and domestic ice-breaking duties. Time. The Honorable Candice Miller, U.S. sophisticated vessel. spectacular side launch of the vessel into the Menominee River. The USCGC Hollyhock is a 225-ft. from Port Huron, Michigan, under the command of Lt. Michael McBrady. Pacific Ocean, and the Gulf of Mexico. distinguished buoy tender. Guard cutter that served the United States from 1937 through 1982. City, Mich., on March 25, 1937. fleet serving the U.S.