America’s Watershed Initiative: Sustaining a Critical Waterway
Kimberly Lutz and America’s Watershed Initiative (AWI) are making every effort to sustain the Mississippi River for generations to come.The Mississippi River is one of the world’s largest river systems and is arguably America’s most critical waterway. Flowing over 2,350 miles, spanning, at points, up to eleven miles, and discharging approximately 593,003 cubic feet of water per second into the Gulf of Mexico, the Mighty Mississippi is awe inspiring in terms of its natural characteristics as well as its commercial impact on both the American and global economies.
ACBL to Pay Over $2 Million for Mississippi River Oil Spill
Jeffersonville, Ind.-based barging company American Commercial Barge Line (ACBL) has agreed to acquire and preserve 649 acres of woodland wildlife habitat and will pay an additional $2 million for damages stemming from a 2008 oil spill on the Mississippi River, near New Orleans.The company has already paid $1.32 million to reimburse the federal and state trustees for their past damage assessment and restoration planning costs after one of its barges discharged approximately 6,734 barrels (282,828 gallons) of No. 6 fuel oil into the Mississippi River upriver of New Orleans in July 2008.
Missouri River Basin is Booming
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Missouri River Basin Water Management Division is maintaining above normal releases at the four lower dams on the Missouri River. The excess water will allow the Corps to extend the navigation season and provide higher winter releases. Navigation service to the mouth of the Missouri River will now be extended until December 10. Conditions in the basin affected by tributary inflow could extend the season for days after that. Increases in shipping along the Missouri River are being seen north toward Sioux City for the first time in 11 years. The Siouxland Chamber of Commerce suggested that increased shipping on the Missouri River and all the way to the gulf, complements the air, rail and road infrastructure Sioux City prides itself on.
Study to Explore Separating Great Lakes and Mississippi Basin
According to reports, a growing number of scientists, advocacy groups and public officials believe that it's time for man to think seriously about separating the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins. It may be the best way, they say, to stop the spread of invasive species between the basins. The Alliance for the Great Lakes has launched the first study. With $125,000 in funding from the Great Lakes Fishery Trust, Great Lakes Fishery Commission and the US-Canada International Joint Commission, the Chicago-based Alliance for the Great Lakes will spend the next year studying the feasibility of permanently separating the two watersheds. Source: NSNet
Feature: Barge Movement Tracking of Certain Dangerous Cargoes (CDCs) Mandated
On May 2, 2003, the USCG published two Temporary Final Rules establishing Regulated Navigation Areas (RNAs) in the Federal Register governing the movement (by barge) of Certain Dangerous Cargoes (CDCs) upon the inland rivers of the Eighth Coast Guard District and the Illinois Waterway System in the Ninth Coast Guard District. The rules will apply from April 16, 2003, until October 31, 2003. Any movement of CDCs by barge within the waters specified must be reported to the Inland River Vessel Movement Center (IRVMC) by telephone, fax, or e-mail. The USCG indicates that no Notice of Proposed Rulemaking was published as this notice falls under the exemption to the Administrative Procedures Act contained in the Maritime Transportation Security Act (MTSA) of 2002.
