inland port magazine 112

Inland Port

Interview with Congressman Nick Rahall

Today’s Sediment Management Systems

We Don’t Need More Pipelines, We Have Rivers

Panama Canal ExpansionWhat Do the Experts Say?Part 2 of a 3-part Series

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2012 ISSUE I

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INLAND PORT MAGAZINE2012 Issue IVolume IV

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Divergent Opinions on the Impact of Panama Canal ExpansionBy Randolph R. Resor, USDOT Policy Advisorand Eric Gabler, US Maritime Administration Economist

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Inland Port2012• Issue I

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SMART BUSINESSWhy Do We Need a Pipeline from Pittsburgh to Missouri? We Already Have Rivers!By Joseph P. Linck, Jr., NAFTA Marine Company

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WCI Leadership Award Goes to Congressman Nick RahallExclusive IP Interview with Representative Rahall19

Port of New Orleans Boasts Record Container Volume20America’s Central Port Hosts Chinese Delegation23Industry Notebook26

Today’s Sentiment Management TechnologyBy Rob Kirby, BSc, PhD, C.Geol, Dist. D.NE of ASCE, FGSSediment Innovation Centre (SICEM), Emden, Germanyand William H. McAnally, PhD, PE, D.CE, F.ASCEMississippi State University, USA

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in my opinion...Industry Must Make Doing Business More Cost-Effective toCompete with Rail and TruckingBy Lisa Victoria Waller, BDG International, Inc.

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THE LAST WORDInterview with Jim StarkExecutive Director, Gulf Intracoastal Canal Association (GICA)

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2012 Issue I4 www.inlandportmagazine.com

Divergent Opinions on the Impact of Panama Canal ExpansionA significant number of studies and articles on the expected impact of the Panama Canal expansion have appeared in the last several years. Many attempted to forecast the changes in trade flows that will result. In Part 2 of this 3-part series, the authors examine these conclusions – and how they differ, sometimes in major ways.

By Randolph R. ResorUSDOT Policy Advisorand Eric GablerUS Maritime Administration Economist

Many vessels have simply outgrown the Panama Canal.

52012 Issue I www.inlandportmagazine.com

Some reports anticipate that the Panama Canal expansion will lead to major shifts in trade flows from West to East Coast ports.

Others conclude that the net effect of the expan-sion will be only minor shifts from current flows (this is not to suggest, however, that any study implies that the expansion should not have been undertaken). A review of the conclusions of some of the reports on various issues related to future trade flows is presented below. This section is fol-lowed by descriptions of the readiness of ports on the West, East, and Gulf Coasts to accommodate larger ships and future trade growth.

RANGE of ASSESSMENTS of THE ExPECTED IMPACT

In 2008, Drewry Supply Chain Advisors pre-dicted that Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports could seize up to 25 percent of the West Coast’s current cargo base. Drewry warned that “without radi-cal action, intermodal distribution [from the West Coast] to the Midwest and beyond will gradually die” (Drewry, p. 15). In making this assessment, Drewry assumed that railroads would not price or invest in a manner compatible with maintaining the West Coast intermodal market share of Asian cargoes. For instance, Drewry noted that “Faced with a tightening market and rising demand, the railroads have chosen to up their prices rather than invest in more capacity, in the mistaken belief that they had a captive market” (Drewry, p. 10). It concluded that if the ACP succeeds in getting 13,000 TEU ships through its new locks then the US West Coast ports “could be ejected from the Midwest market altogether” (Drewry, p. 12). “Denver, Albuquerque and El Paso will be the bor-der towns – being halfway between the West and Gulf coasts, inland costs will largely cancel each other out at those points” (Drewry, p. 12).

Other analysts disagree with this assessment. As will be described below, the western railroads and West Coast ports have been making signifi-cant improvements to rail service in recent years. More fundamentally, some analysts believe the significant shift of cargoes from West Coast ports to all-water routes to the East Coast that took place over the last decade was driven primarily by a desire of shippers to diversify following the West Coast port lockout of 2002 and severe port congestion levels, particularly in 2004. The risk of service disruptions on the West Coast led firms to establish warehouses in close proximity to East and Gulf Coast ports, such as Savannah, and to shift to all-water service through the Panama Canal. Accordingly, Jean-Paul Rodrigue reports that, “While the intermodal option was convention-ally dominant, the diversification of routing options between Northeast Asia and the American East Coast has been remarkable over the last decade... While in 2000 intermodal (land bridge) accounted for 82% of TEUs between Northeast Asia and the East Coast, this share went down to 55% in 2007” (Rodrigue, p. 18). Norfolk Southern (NS) reported that in 2000, 70 percent of its container traffic was interchanged from western carriers. Now, 60 percent originates or terminates at ports served

directly by NS (Inland Port Logistics Conference, Chicago, June 2011).

Significantly, Rodrigue does not expect that shippers and freight forwarders would move away from the East and Gulf Coasts even if the all-water route were to lose most of its current advantages (Rodrigue, p. 18). On the other hand, if diversi-fication really is a key part of routing strategy, freight forwarders may be reluctant to place even more dependence on East and Gulf Coast ports. Rodrigue notes, “In view of this shift that took place before the expansion of the Panama Canal, it is uncertain to what extent it could endure.”

Similarly, in a report for the Southern California Association of Governments, Cambridge Systematics, Inc. quotes Dan Smith of The Tioga Group who observes that, “The Drewry report understates the importance of transit time and reliability in shipper routing choices and the role of the Southern California consumer market” and “ignores the substantial investments being made in West Coast port and rail intermodal capacity, and significant capacity limits on alternative routes” (Cambridge Systematics 2011 p. 5-3). Cambridge Systematics also cites Professor Asaf Ashar of the National Ports and Waterways Institute at the University of New Orleans, who expects that “…the expansion of the canal will be a bump, not a sea change. We won’t see much of a change – maybe a percent or two – because most of the big retail-ers already are going all-water.” Reduced operating costs will be eroded by necessarily higher Panama Canal tolls (Cambridge Systematics, p. 5-3).

Industry professionals who took part in a recent Global Shipping Game held by the US Naval War College on December 8-9, 2010, also concluded that the impact of the Panama Canal expansion on international shipping will be gradual. As summarized in the report,

Players felt there would be no watershed event resulting from the canal expansion…Industry experts explain that due to market-driven factors, from building of new Panamax ships to investment in facilities to handle these ships, it will take time for industry to react to these changes... Due to the complexity of the numerous factors to base invest-ment decisions on, the players assessed that much of the impact from the canal expansion would not be manifested for over 10 years.

ECoNoMIES of VESSEL SIzEThere is some disagreement about the eco-

nomic advantages of these larger ships even among the operators themselves. While the largest container ships can move freight at a lower cost per container, some of this saving can be lost due to inefficiencies in cargo handling while in port. Another factor is the amount of traffic on offer. If there is insufficient volume, the ship may never operate fully loaded, reducing the cost advantage of larger ships. Unbalanced export and import traffic can mean that a ship steams only partially loaded on one leg of its trip. Finally, as vessel sizes increase, there will be proportionately smaller number of markets that can generate sufficient volume to fill 13,000 TEU ships, thus increasing

the need for transshipment to feeders and extra handling costs and transit time.

Accordingly, as already noted, seven of the 20 largest carriers have not yet committed to ships of above 10,000 TEU; however, all have ordered ships over 5,000 TEU. One carrier has ordered vessels of 18,000 TEU, and several more carriers have ordered vessels of 14,000 TEU or larger. Alphaliner reports that pressure to order large ships is mounting and vessels below 8,000 TEU may feel particular competitive pressure from larger ships (Alphaliner Weekly Newsletter, Volume 2011, Issue 25). This pressure may be most severe on existing Panamax vessels (vessels of less than 5,000 TEU capacities). Fairplay recently reported an indication of the impact that post-Panamax and ultra large container ships have had on long-haul routes, noting that a Shanghai-based broker stated in August 2011 that “a 3,000-4,000 TEU ship is now going for $15,000 per day, from $30,000/day in the same period last year…Charter rates for Panamax ships have fallen 50 percent, which shows how much demand has dropped….there’re virtually no requirements for such ships” (Daily Fairplay News, Aug 23, 2011). Although lower char-ter rates for Panamax vessels may help keep them competitive on trade routes over the near term, the impacts of these rates on new orders (and future availability) of these vessels will be negative.

EDRG, in a draft of the study of the Panama Canal expansion being prepared for the USDOT, estimates that potential cost savings for a 13,000 TEU containership relative to a current 5,000 TEU Panamax vessels on all-water routes between the Far East and the US East Coast are just over $400 per TEU (EDRG, June 2011 draft). This is a significant saving relative to a rate of $1,500 or more per TEU (based on $3,000 or more per FEU and not including port and inland charges). It is by no means certain that carriers would deploy 13,000 TEU vessels through the expanded Canal immedi-ately, either due to lack of adequate port facilities at the East and Gulf Coasts or lack of initial cargo volumes needed to fill out these ships. However, it is apparent from the calculations done by EDRG that the bulk of the $400 per TEU saving would be realized in the initial scaling up of vessel size from 5,000 TEU to 8,000 TEU – so even the deployment of vessels under 10,000 TEU would yield signifi-cant savings on these Panama Canal routes.

EDRG notes that cargo owners considering cargo switching from West to East and Gulf Coasts will not be directly affected by the gross $400 per TEU cost savings described above, but rather by the savings passed on to them after shares of the gross savings have been claimed by transportation providers. After making assumptions about reten-tions by the ACP (in tolls), carriers, ports, and rail to recover their own expenses in upgrading infra-structure and vessels, actual savings passed on to shippers could be less than $125 per TEU.

EDRG further observes that ship sizes serving the West Coast will not remain static. West Coast ports have deep channels and, with appropri-ate investment, will be able to handle the largest container ships of the future, including vessels


exceeding 13,000 TEU that will be too large even for the expanded Panama Canal. As ever larger vessels are deployed to the West Coast, ship-ping costs to ports on that coast will fall as well. Preliminary results from EDRG indicate that the costs of transportation to West Coast ports could drop by about $95 per TEU as ship sizes increase from 8,000 TEU to 13,000 TEU (EDRG, June 2011 draft). Allowing for retention of some of this saving by vessel, port, and rail operators, the cost sav-ings to shippers out of the West Coast would be

approximately $55 (not including the inland cost component). Thus, the net savings to a shipper considering a switch of Asian cargo from the West Coast to the East or Gulf Coast via the expanded Panama Canal would be only about $70 per TEU (i.e., the difference between the $125 per TEU savings to the East or Gulf Coast and the $55 per TEU savings to the West Coast). This assumes that direct service by 13,000 TEU vessels could be accommodated by East and Gulf Coast ports and does not adjust for potential differentials in inland

distribution costs.Clearly, container transshipment costs from

Caribbean ports to East and Gulf Coasts ports could quickly erode or eliminate this saving. Similarly, higher freight inventory expenses, particularly those associated with slow steaming operations on the longer all-water route, would work against the longer all-water service relative to land bridge intermodal service − possibly ensuring that only shipments of lower value freight would be diverted. Perhaps most importantly, the western


railroads could, if they chose, counter the modest residual cost saving associated with larger vessels to the East and Gulf Coasts through rate adjust-ments and faster delivery times. Similarly, higher than expected tolls by the ACP could significantly hurt the economics of Panama Canal shipping.

INLAND RAIL CoNNECTIoNS AND RAIL RATE TRENDS

The ACP, when it set out to study the need for a canal expansion, assumed that “the route’s land

component, in particular the US Pacific coast ports and railroad system, face labor, environmental, community and capacity problems that may only be solved through substantial long-term invest-ments” (ACP, p. 20). This is true, but the railroads serving US West Coast ports have been making those investments over the last decade or more.

The Union Pacific Railroad (UP) and BNSF Railway have been making systematic improve-ments from ports to inland connections. These improvements − too extensive to describe here

but ably summarized by Cambridge Systemat-ics − include installation of double track, extension of passing sidings, construction of new loading facilities, and the use of longer trains and express train services (Cambridge Systematics, Chapter 4). Both railroads have been introducing longer trains – where a decade ago a typical intermodal double-stack train included 21 cars of five wells each, carrying 210 forty-foot containers, UP and BNSF are now moving more than 300 containers per train. These railroads are also major participants in

Transshipment offers the ability to immediately operate 13,000 TEU vessels through the expanded Panama Canal when it opens without having to wait for US East and Gulf Coast ports to deepen channels to accommodate the biggest ships.

public-private partnerships to improve the nation’s rail service, described immediately below.

The US Federal government has been working closely with State and local governments and the railroads over the last few years to greatly improve the efficiency and capacity of the nation’s freight railroad system. The principal source of US Fed-eral participation has been through the Transporta-tion Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant program, first initiated through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Federal TIGER grant money has flowed into the Colton Crossing project and the West Basin Rail Yard at the Port of Los Angeles, as well as to improvements at Tower 55 in Ft. Worth, TX. The CREATE public-private partnership, which received a significant TIGER grant, will improve rail service through the Chicago terminal and reduce delays (as much as two days of transit time can be lost in trucking containers from one rail terminal to another in the Chicago area). BNSF has opened Logistics Park Chicago in Elwood, IL as an inter-modal terminal and UP is building an intermodal terminal at Joliet, IL.

Similarly, the Eastern railroads, cognizant of recent and anticipated growth in all-water traffic to East Coast ports, have also been making major

improvements. The NS Heartland Corridor provides a double-stack container route from Hampton Roads to the Midwest, and the CSX National Gateway project will improve a parallel route that also serves Baltimore (Cambridge Systematics p. 4-6). Other rail improvements, including (but not limited to) the NS Crescent Corridor and rail improvements by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in northern New Jersey will improve rail freight movements to and from the Gulf and East Coasts. Note that the Heartland Corridor, National Gateway, and Crescent Corridor have also received Federal assistance in the form of TIGER or other grants.

Other investments in the North American rail network will take pressure off rail routes east from Los Angeles/Long Beach, Oakland, and Seattle/Tacoma. Canadian National Railway now runs a daily service between Prince Rupert, BC and Memphis, and has made considerable investments in improved train control systems, longer sidings, and double track to handle two million TEU on this route by 2020 (Cambridge Systematics p. 8-2). Kansas City Southern is making improvements on its route to the port of Lazaro Cardenas in Michoacan, Mexico.

As noted above, potential savings to ship-pers associated with the use of large container ships through the expanded Panama Canal could be significantly eroded by rail rate adjustments. Unfortunately, information about rates is very difficult to gather. Cambridge Systematics cites a railroad official who reports that, from 2003 to 2009, intermodal rail rates increased at an average annual rate of 8 percent. Based on this and other information, Cambridge Systematics estimates that rail rates from Los Angeles-Long Beach to Chicago may have approached $1,400 per container (FEU) in 2009 and notes that industry analysts expect increases to continue, although at reduced rates (Cambridge Systematics p. 4-2). This does not imply, however, that the railroads would pursue rate increases in the face of a marked shift in car-goes away from West Coast ports. The railroads are sophisticated profit-maximizing entities that will respond to competition. Cambridge Systematics includes a Journal of Commerce interview with Curtis D. Spenser, President of IMS Worldwide, who states that were the railroads to “see a market share drop approach seven to eight percent West Coast to East Coast, they have it in their power to immediately ‘equalize inland rates’ with the stroke of a pen. And, in my humble opinion, that is exactly what they would do” (Cambridge Systematics p. 4-11). Moreover, based on the above figures, the rate drops needed to equalize the cost advantage, after allowing for faster delivery premiums, would not be large.

A rate response by the eastern railroads to counter a western railroad rate reduction is pos-sible but not likely. The Heartland Corridor, the Crescent Corridor, the National Gateway, and other projects will provide more efficient rail ser-vice, but, with regard to the inland movement of all-water cargoes from Asia, these railroads are already highly constrained in the rates they can charge. Container rates to West Coast ports from China are currently about $750 per TEU (based on $1,500 per FEU and excluding port costs) compared to $1,500 per TEU (based on $3,000 per FEU and excluding port costs) to East Coast ports via the Panama Canal (Alphaliner Monthly Monitor, Container Freight Watch, August 2011).

Assuming port handling costs are similar between East and West Coast ports, if the delivery cost by rail from New York to Chicago were $250 per TEU, the western railroad cost to the same location could be as high as $1000 per TEU (with-out even factoring in the effect of faster delivery times by West Coast routing). A $50 reduction by the western railroads to retain cargo in the face of a $70 effective drop in container rates due to larger vessels via the Panama Canal would be propor-tionately much smaller than would a $50 reduction by the eastern railroads. This would imply that the ability to distribute Far East containers from East and Gulf Coast ports to and from inland locations will not change radically from current practices due to the Panama Canal expansion. On the other hand, container movements to and from inland locations in US Midwest for Europe, Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia (via the Suez Canal) will find an efficient outlet via the


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eastern railroads due to more competitive water rates available for these locations at East Coast ports vs. West Coast ports.

On a related note, the inland movement of Asian containers to and from the East and Gulf Coasts will tend to be more concentrated in truck movements than is the case on the West Coast. It is generally believed that the economies of rail intermodal movements relative to truck movements are most evident over distances of 750 miles and greater, whereas the great majority of container freight moved to and from these East and Gulf Coast ports is for locations within 500 miles of the ports. In the future, truck rates from these ports will likely increase relative to rail rates due to a con-tinuing shortage of long distance truck drivers, high diesel fuel costs, and regulatory actions to improve truck safety. Also, some port authorities, such as the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, are attempting to incentivize the greater use of rail through port fee structures.

These latter factors will lead to some shifting of inland movements from truck to rail movement. For shorter distances within 500 miles, however, trucks will still carry most of the cargo arriving at the ports. This could impede the ability of eastern railroads to reach volume and frequency efficien-cies comparable to western railroad services.

In summary, the relative cost advantage of introducing 13,000 TEU containerships carrying cargo from the Far East through the expanded Panama Canal to the East and Gulf Coast can be significantly eroded by rate actions of the western railroads. Although there may be some westward

penetration of Asian cargoes from East and Gulf Coast ports, it appears unlikely that it will be as significant as expected by some analysts, largely limited to a presence in inland areas east of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers.

PANAMA CANAL ToLLS AND fuTuRE TRAffIC

Rodrigue reports that the ACP had already increased tolls to $72 per TEU of ship capacity as of 2009, 80 percent above tolls in 2006, and has received pressure from the shipping industry to freeze or lower its tolls (Rodrigue, p. 26). In November 2010, the ACP notified customers that tolls would increase to $74 per TEU of ship capac-ity as of January 2011 plus $8 per TEU for laden containers (ACP Toll Assessment, 2010).

Various factors could put pressure on the ACP to further raise tolls, including possible construction cost overruns and lower-than-projected volumes of vessel traffic. Clearly, if future tolls increase to the point as to negate cost savings, there would be little or no incentive to shift more cargo to the East and Gulf Coast from the West Coast for delivery to or from Asia.

TRANSSHIPMENT VS. DIRECT SERVICE To uS EAST CoAST

Large container ships may serve US East and Gulf Coast ports directly or may transship contain-ers to smaller feeder vessels that would then serve these ports. Transshipment offers the ability to

immediately operate 13,000 TEU vessels through the expanded Panama Canal when it opens with-out having to wait for US East and Gulf Coast ports to deepen channels and make other port improve-ments to accommodate the biggest ships.

Of all US East and Gulf Coast ports, only the Port of Virginia can currently accommodate a 50-foot draft, although New York and Baltimore are in the final stages of attaining 50 foot drafts and will be able to do so by 2014 or sooner (and already handle post-Panamax ships that do not require the full 50 feet). The large ships must also exchange large volumes of containers at a port to justify the time and expense of a port call that would delay thousands of through containers. Using transshipment, large 13,000 TEU ships could reduce port calls to a single stop in the Caribbean or the US rather than one or two stops each in the Gulf and East Coasts.

Current industry perceptions are that the US Jones Act (which requires the use of US built and crewed ships to move cargoes between US domestic ports) would make a transshipment operation out of a US port more expensive than a comparable service from a foreign port (in which foreign-flag vessels would operate as feeder ships to US ports). However, US-flag services could prove viable in transshipment operations between some domestic ports.

Potential foreign transshipment ports are in the Caribbean (e.g., Freeport, Bahamas; Kingston, Jamaica; Cristobal and Balboa, Panama), and per-

www.marinesonic.com


haps ports on the northern coast of South America. Several of these foreign ports have already taken steps to be ready to receive the very large con-tainer ships that will use the expanded Canal. Transferring containers adds to the cost of con-tainer delivery, but Rodrigue notes that specialized transshipment ports could lower these costs due to economies of scale (keeping large cranes con-tinuously busy), coordinating with US Customs for imports bound for the United States, and offering logistics and other value added services to ship-pers (Rodrigue, pp. 51-52). He also observes that, at the global level, only 16 percent of commercial relations involve direct connections between ports, meaning that transshipment is a fundamental aspect of maritime shipping networks (Rodrigue, p. 50). Accordingly, Rodrigue argues that, “Feeder services to East Coast ports would thus increase, which would help mitigate the port depth issue [in US ports]” (Rodrigue, p. 22).

Working against the economic argument for transshipment is the cost of transferring a con-tainer at a transshipment port and the extra time required for that transshipment vs. direct service to US ports. As discussed above, the total net cost saving to shippers of all-water service to the East and Gulf Coasts via the Panama Canal vs. West Coast service may be as small as $70 per TEU for direct routings. Even assuming a greater pass-through of cost savings to shippers by East and Gulf Coast ports and carriers (e.g., the ports would not need to recover the same capital investments if

they did not need to purchase with new cranes and equipment), the net savings due to larger vessels relative to West Coast service would likely be no more than $200 per TEU. The need to pay for an additional container transfer cost (lift-off and lift-on fees) at the transshipment hub could reduce this saving by half or more, although it is likely that the volume efficiencies of the transshipment hub could reduce some of this added expense. Moreover, the additional time (perhaps two days) of indirect ser-vice via a Caribbean hub could be significant for a trip that is already up to a week longer (using cur-rent direct services) than West Coast intermodal service. Cargo inventory costs in transit can aver-age $12 per TEU per day if one allows for interest and depreciation of cargo (Joey van Elswijk, p. 23, derived from TEU and cost data). Time sensitive cargoes (even if low value) would involve higher costs for delays.

Accordingly, although Rodrigue makes the case for transshipment, a small majority of industry respondents to a survey he conducted believed that East Coast ports are more likely to get direct port calls rather than transshipment services by feeder vessels (Rodrigue, p. 55). Participants in the Global Shipping Game study of the Panama Canal observed that retailers may not toler-ate increased transit time, handling cost, and increased inventory cost of transshipment, but con-cluded that transshipment operations will increase as a short term solution until US East Coast ports are ready with improved infrastructure (Naval War

College, p. 36, 51). This latter assessment is prob-ably realistic, although one expects that most of the major East and Gulf Coast ports will, over the next decade, make provisions for 8,000+ TEU con-tainer ships that will increasingly dominate world markets and will therefore eventually receive direct service via the expanded Canal. IP

THE AUTHORSRandolph R. Resor is a Policy Advisor in the USDOT Office of the Secretary of Transportation in Washington, DC. He can be reached at [email protected].

Eric Gabler is an Economist for the US Maritime Administration in Washington, DC. You can reach him at [email protected].

The opinions presented here are those of the authors, not necessarily those of USDOT, and should not be construed to indicate the conclusions of the Maritime Administration’s Panama Canal Expansion study, which is still underway. Printed with permission of the PIANC Smart Rivers Conference. The next Smart Rivers Conference will be held in 2013 in Belgium and The Netherlands. For more, visit www.pianc.us.

www.densona.com


Some good folks in Houston want to build a liquid products pipe-line from Pittsburgh to Cape

Girardeau, Missouri.Why? Someone needs to tell these oil

tycoons that rivers already go there. This new 595-mile pipeline is

estimated to cost $1.3 billion dollars. God gave us the Ohio and Mississippi rivers for free. We, and the Indians before us, have been using them to transport cargos for centuries.

Why try and duplicate the Ohio River? Pipelines are restricted to one destination and supply source, and are very expensive, long-term investments ($1.3B). So why build a new river, when we already have a free one?

River tank barges are not re-stricted to one commodity, and can be used to do many other things in case production is erratic. Barges are so versatile that they can adjust to the ebbs and flows of a new oil field. If production drops off a bit, just cancel a few barges.

A pipeline is what it is. It cannot adjust.

Barges are not restricted to one single customer either, and can sail and deliver their product anywhere on the USA’s 25,000-mile river system.

Most refineries are on the water, some-where; Chicago, Mobile, New Orleans, Hous-ton, Corpus Christi, etc. Barges can even get to Mexico’s front door, via the Gulf Intra-coastal Waterway at the Port of Brownsville, Texas, which already supplies Mexico with millions of barrels of gasoline, diesel, lube oils, and many petro chemicals.

A Pittsburgh-to-Cape Girardeau, Mis-souri, run would require four 20,000/bbl barges per day to handle the 80,000 bbls/day planned, which would take perhaps 84 new barges, each on a three-week round trip. At $2 million for a new barge, that’s far cheaper than $1.3 billion they will spend to build this dedicated, single-commodity, single-market, single-use pipeline.

In addition, barges are available today, for hire. They require no investment in new interstate environmental permits from the many states involved, and do not have to wait the years it will take to complete this me

ga-construction project. These “wet” natural gas fields are located

up and down the navigable Ohio, Mononga-hela, and Allegheny rivers, which already spi-der web this part of Appalachia. This means barges are more flexible, and can reach these various wet gas fields scattered throughout West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. That, of course, will eliminate the need for a spider web of ever more short pipelines, and thou-sands of trucks, to hook into and feed this one big one. Just build short feeder lines, to the closest river bank.

Another big positive for barges is that clean products like gasoline and diesel from St. Louis area refineries, Chicago, or even Houston or Corpus Christi, could be back hauled on these same barges. And that just might drop the price of these important commodities every-where in the upper Ohio River valley.

Perhaps we should all rethink the use of our God-given, 25,000 mile river system. It provides access to a great variety of different customers and markets. It is as relevant for us today as it was for our Indian ancestors. IP

THE AUTHORJoseph P. Linck, Jr., is a retired commodi-

ties trader and former Director of the Port of Brownsville. Through his NAFTA Marine Company and periodic email releases, he urges America’s inland waterways industry to capitalize on business opportunities with Mexico. Email: [email protected].

Why Do We Need a Pipeline from Pittsburgh to Missouri? We Already Have Rivers!By Joseph P. Linck, Jr.

Smart Business

A Pittsburgh-to-Cape Girardeau run would require four

20,000/bbl barges per day to handle the

80,000 bbls/day planned, which would take perhaps

84 new barges, each on a three-week round trip. At $2 million for a new

barge, that’s far cheaper than $1.3 billion they will spend to build this dedi-

cated, single-commodity,single-market,

single-use pipeline.


Modern generic Sediment Management Systems (SMS) are a soft engineering solution to site-specific muddy sediment

deposition problems. In some cases, high productivity/low unit profit dredging and disposal can be replaced by low volume/high unit profit sophisticated management. Dredging companies can thus remain profitable while ports enjoy a significant economic and environmental benefit.

A number of generic SMSs have arisen from improved under-standing of sediment transport and mud rheology. For example, since 2003 a simple auto-flushing system involving a collecting mechanism (gravity) and a discharge system (a remotely operating bed-mounted dredge pump) has been successfully used at Leer on the Leda Estuary, Germany. The system returns fine sediment back into the larger estuary at the same rate at which it encroaches.

A passive structural device installed at the entrance to the Köhlfleet basin on the Elbe in Hamburg reduced the siltation rate by 45%. A similar system has been installed at the entrance to the new Deurganckdok basin in the Scheldt at Antwerp, Belgium. By deflecting sediment away from the basin conventional dredging need is significantly reduced and the burden imposed by sudden large scale dredging and disposal is kept to a minimum.

A third technology is called Nautical Depth. In its original form it applies to naturally occurring fluid mud (high concentration sus-pensions of fine sediment) layers in fairways and basins through which vessels can sail in safety. It uses an alternative bathymetric survey technique which has been adopted widely around the world (Table 1, Figure 1.) At suitable sites, such as the pioneer port for this technology, Rotterdam, multi-billion US$ benefit has arisen during almost 40 years from savings and increased earnings. Proportionate benefit arises at smaller ports to which this technol-ogy is applicable. The practice has been reviewed and ratified by the World Association for Waterborne Transportation (PIANC) for worldwide use.

More recently a second, more sophisticated, iteration of the Nautical Depth concept emerged, called Active Nautical Depth. It involves creating or conditioning fluid mud with a special vessel.

Fluidisation of bed deposits in-situ is, by itself, a very short term solution. The suspension generated will quickly enter the well-known “hindered settling” condition, and any initial shift in the direction of becoming aerobic will rapidly transition back to anaer-obic. Anaerobic pore waters will be expelled in large volumes and the suspension will consolidate over about a 3 week period back to non-navigable settled mud. Fluidisation would need to be repeated at this regular time interval with a view to keeping the particles entrained. This would be possible but of dubious economic viability.

It is, however, intrinsic to the method that at the same time as fluidisation is undertaken, breaking inter-particle bonds and shift-ing the material back to fluid behavior, the chemical and microbio-logical properties are also modified. A dedicated low powered ves-sel, Figure 2, having a small submersible pump on the lower end of a dredge pipe, gently raises the mud into an open hopper. This then oozes across from the inlet to an outlet, picking up oxygen from the atmosphere and changing colour from gray to brown as it does so. The material is then immediately placed back onto the bed. No additives of any kind are required. Oxygenation is vital to the pro-cess as it shifts the suspension from an anaerobic trending direc-tion back to aerobic. In so doing, a suite of natural aerobic bacteria are reactivated while anaerobic bacteria are disabled.

By Rob Kirby, BSc, PhD, C.Geol, Dist. D.NE of ASCE, FGSDirector and Board Member, Sediment Innovation Centre (SICEM), Emden, Germany

and

William H McAnally PhD, PE, D.CE, F.ASCEResearch Professor of Civil & Environment EngineeringMississippi State University, USA

Today’s Sediment Management Technologies

Over the last 200 years, muddy river, estuarine and coastal ports and waterways have been managed using hard engineering structures (sea defences, channel training walls and groins, weirs, etc.) and by traditional dredging and placement. As dredging costs have risen and acceptable placement areas have dwindled, soft engineering methods have become more attractive.

Figure 1: Modern density map, surface of 1.2t/m³, Zeebrugge entrance, obtained using a towed undulating gamma-ray transmissance gauge.


Once back on the bottom the abun-dant aerobes secrete large volumes of Exopolymeric Substances (EPS) or slime, Figure 3.

The EPS blocks the interstices between the flocs and prevents the sus-pensions from dewatering. The process creates a stable emulsion or perpetual fluid mud cloud which persists for up to a year before the aerobes lose their vigour, EPS secretion diminishes and the engineered suspension begins to dewater.

Only then does the material need another phase of mixing.

Emden, on the Ems Estuary in Niedersachsony, Germany, is the proto-type port for Active Nautical Depth. The former mud dredging need of 4 million tonnes/year has been reduced to zero and kept there. The fixed cost of provid-ing access to vessels has been reduced from €12.5 million/year to €4 million/year. The former sediment sink pro-vided by the entrance no longer attracts

significant sediment input because, as far as sediment exchange mechanisms are concerned, it remains “silted up”, though now with navigable fluid mud. Consequently, Active Nautical Depth represents another important sustainable technology.

Active Nautical Depth may prove a more important, broadly applicable technology than those above. It can be applied to muddy ports in non-natural fluid mud areas. It can also be used as a channel-deepening method. Thus, it is a substitute for both maintenance and capi-tal dredging with none of the undesirable side effects of these.

Near- and Far-field Environmental Effects of Active Nautical Depth

The technology has already been suc-cessfully applied to the fairway of the Inner Ems, offering the possibility that it could be applied to maintain or allow estuaries to return to regime whilst still permitting deep-draught vessel naviga-tion.

Naturally-occurring fluid mud accu-mulations are nearly always anaerobic. Fluid muds are in a classical “hindered settling” condition. They will slowly dewater due to floc settlement and in so doing expelling large volumes of anaero-

Table 1: In-situ fluid mud density values adopted in applying Passive Nautical Depth in various port approaches.

www.schuylerco.com


www.seabotix.com

bic pore water. When a deep-draught vessel passes close over or through the top of such a layer an internal wave is generated between the mud and overlying water body by the pressure wave at the bow. Depending upon a number of factors this internal wave may be caused to break, entrain-ing flocculated particles. Hull disturbance will, further, mix the surficial zone of the fluid

mud which will then be raised into the wake of the vessel. Finally, propeller disturbance will stir up more mud, increasing the oxygen demand in the water column.

In contrast, an engi-neered fluid mud cloud generated by condition-ing operations is aerobic and forms a stable non-settling emulsion. The passage of ship traffic will disturb the mud cloud in the same man-ner as is the case for natural anaerobic fluid

mud, though in this case any entrained particles and flocs will be aerobic. They may even aid oxygenation of an overly-ing water body exhibiting dissolved oxygen suppression. Consequently, a mechanism having undesirable implica-tions for natural fluid mud is neutral or beneficial in respect to conditioned mud.

Agitation dredging is a vig-

orous process aimed at stir-ring up and temporarily dis-persing mud deposits. Little or nothing can prevent wide spreading of the entrained material. Such suspended material remains anaerobic, with the consequence that the physical and microbio-logical attributes can lead to the material settling on and smothering shellfish cultiva-tion sites or fish hatcheries along a channel margin. The conditioning operation intrin-sic to Active Nautical Depth is quite different. It is an anti-siltation technology not a dredging technique. It gently raises fluid mud at its in-situ

volume, destroys any develop-ing inter-particle bonds, oxy-genates the mud and returns it gently back onto the bed with-out any significant volume increase or material loss. The density, shear strength and viscosity contrast between the conditioned mud and overly-ing water body is sufficiently large that release of any mate-rial onto marginal shoals is prevented.

In recent decades a highly successful anti-fouling paint used on recreational, com-mercial and military vessels used an organic compound, Tri-butyl Tin as a biocide. This was found to leach off and become incorporated into harbor muds. It remained active within the environment

having a detrimental effect on organisms, coupled with being spread more widely in dredged material. A separate by-product of conditioning operations at Emden has been recognition that aero-bic bacteria break down and destroy the oxygen ring in this compound, releasing inert tin oxide. This is “induced self-cleansing”.

Natural “self-cleansing” of other contaminants has already been recognised in the literature. Thus, the Active Nautical Depth technology has an ancillary role as an in-situ chemical digester. It has yet to be appreciated which, if any,

other anthropogenic organic contaminants might also be susceptible to in-situ break-down in an oxygenated condi-tioned mud suspension.

CONCLUSIONSEarlier publications have

explained at length what a number of modern sediment management technologies comprise. Following a brief explanation and focussed largely on what is termed Active Nautical Depth, the next step is taken. Having distinguished the nuances of agitation dredging versus Active Nautical Depth as well as explaining how, via oxygen-ation, the otherwise natural hindered settling condition is suppressed, a next step


Figure 2: Fluid mud spreading across the open hopper. The flow is laminar and the surface “ropey,” both fea-tures of gentle lava eruptions from basic, Hawaiian-type volcanoes. Mud is re-oxygenated on its way to the outlet. Scale L-R ~5m. Inset: The Conditioning vessel Meerval in entrance to Emden docks passing a car carrier.

Figure 3: Photomicrograph of early stage, oxygenated suspen-sion. Clay flocs with bacteria included with ghost outline from EPS. Surrounding water has free-floating, rod-shaped, domed bacteria, 1μm dia. Micrograph field width 140μm.

www.mvbsjeff.com


is taken to outline the far-field and near-field environmental benefits of this management method. It is classified as an anti-siltation method in which no sediment is relocated, rather than a dredging method and, consequently, should require neither a dredging nor a disposal permit.

It is explained how, in the far-field, conditioning of fairways is already permitting estuaries to return to a regime condition whilst still allowing safe ship access. Ports are being rendered invisible to fine sediment and there are many and obvious implications for sediment exchanges via coastal circulation cells and to particularly sensitive areas such as the Baltic Sea and the Venice Lagoon. In such locations the days of high volume/low unit profit dredging can be replaced by low volume/high added-value manipulation. Companies embarking on these operations in such restricted areas can still make a commercial success, whereas shipping and all the economic benefits flowing from this trade can continue.

In the near-field an equally broad range of desirable ben-efits, including “self-cleansing” of contaminants, is outlined. The initial concept dating from 1974 called Passive Nautical Depth and related to natural fluid mud accumulations has been refined now to Active Nautical Depth. The latter applies to non-fluid mud ports, as well as being a substitute for both mainte-nance and capital dredging. In this manner “water-side” man-agement is beginning to catch up with “land-side” management and ship size growth. All three need to be adopted in order that our technological society might progress.

In short, this seems an important contributor to river port management In respect of these necessities, in view of the often severe perturbation of natural systems to accommodate large ves-sels, it is remarkable that no river or estuary has a sophisticated port sediment management plan embracing these technologies.

THE AUTHORSRobert Kirby, BSc, Ph.D, C.Geol, FGS, Dist.D.NE., is a prin-

cipal in Ravensrodd Consultants, Taunton, UK. He chaired the international PIANC Working Group which, in 2008, produced Report 102 “Minimizing Harbor Siltation.” He has developed and brought to commercial fruition a number of generic Sediment Management Systems. He is the co-inventor of the Nautical Depth concept, as well as the continuous vertical gamma-transmissance, and later, towed undulating (Navitracker) profilers with which to measure this. Nautical Depth is a concept applicable to fairway maintenance in high turbidity (fluid mud) systems. This initial concept must now be termed Passive Nautical Depth and has been evaluated, ratified and promulgated world-wide by PIANC. Dr Kirby also made a contribution to the science underpinning Active Nautical Depth, a method to further minimize maintenance dredging need and, at the same time, use the fluid mud cloud created to decontaminate the sediment in situ. Email him at [email protected].

William H. McAnally, Ph.D., P.E., D.NE, F. ASCE, is a Research Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Mississippi State University and Co-Director, Northern Gulf Institute. He teaches and practices inland and coastal hydraulics, sedimentation, and marine transportation engineering. He and his wife, Carol, have four children and five grandchil-dren and live in Columbus, MS. Email him at [email protected].

www.waterways.org


As a freight forwarder, it is our job at BDG to consider all the options. The Illinois-based company does not shy away from the challenges of using the inland waterways. We embrace it

and work hard to consider short shipping when looking at moving large oversize equipment.

However, this is not always a feasible solution. The first and most important challenge is time. The project timeline

needs to be kept on track and may not be able wait for the rivers or lakes to be open to move the cargo or have equipment available.

The second reason is the feeling of security. Is this a secure way to move our shipment? To those in the inland waterway business, we are assured that this is a safe way to move the cargo. However, once you read the 15-page contract it is questionable if the shipper really wants to take on the liability.

The third and most staggering consideration is the cost. The cost of barging is incomparable to trucking or using the rail.

For example, short shipping along the St. Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes is a fraction of the distance between Montreal, Canada to Antwerp, Belgium, but can be equal to the cost.

How can we get the pricing in line so we have some comparable options and can really consider the waterways?

This is a question the service providers need to consider. Many of the ports along the Great Lakes and the inland waterways want to increase their volume. But who is going to take the financial hit to make it happen?

Back in 2001, the Quebec Government created a commitment to use the St. Lawrence River when it poses a good alternative to inland transportation. It was a 10-year plan of integration, which in 2011 began to affect common oversize cargo.

The interpretation of the rules by the local permitting office (Ministere des Transports du Quebec - MTQ) started leaning toward barging versus inland freight heavily in 2011. Even after a local Route Survey was completed proving that we would have one lane accessible for possible emergency vehicle use, the local MTQ required barge transportation versus land. The MTQ cites their responsibility to keep the roads safe and follow the goal of promoting marine transportation.

If the inland ports and service vendors want to grow their businesses, they need to re-invent the services, pricing, marketing, and contracts to make them business-friendly to shippers.

The success of the Ocean FCL services worldwide is not only the simplicity of the ocean container, but also the pricing, marketing, and ease of booking a container.

If the inland waterways want to be an alternative to the road or rail freight, we need to make it easier and more cost-effective for the company who will ultimately pay the bill.

BDG has been working hard to put together services for moving oversize cargo using these methods. However, making a true advancement will mean having everyone thinking about logistics on the waterways. IP

Lisa Victoria Waller is Vice President and minority owner of BDG International, an International Freight Forwarder, Project Freight Forwarder, U.S. Customs Broker and Letter of Credit Specialist in Elgin (Chicago), Illinois. She is a U.S. Licensed Customs Broker, IATA Certified, DG Certified, IAC & CTPAT Security Coordinator, Certified Customs Specialist, Certified Export Specialist and has a BS /International Business. Email her at [email protected].

By Lisa Victoria WallerCHB Vice PresidentBDG International, Inc.

in my opinion...

Industry Must Make Doing Business More Cost-Effective to Compete with Rail and Trucking


WCI Leadership Award Goes to Congressman Nick RahallUS Congressman Nick J. Rahall, II (WV-03)

received the Eleventh Annual Waterways Council, Inc. Leadership Service Award. A reception in his honor was held February 15 at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Washington, DC.

“Waterways Council is honored to show its appreciation to Congressman Rahill and to thank him for his commitment to America’s critical waterway infrastructure and to the environment,” said Michael J, Toohey, President/CEO of Water-ways Council, Inc. “Our Leadership Service Award recognizes true champions of our nation’s water-ways and port system, and Rep. Rahall certainly exemplifies this.”

Representative Rahall, a West Virginia native and Democrat who represents his state’s Third Congressional District, has served on the House Transportation and Infrastructure for his entire 35-year tenure in Congress. After serving as the Com-mittee’s Vice Chairman for four years, Rahall was selected to be the Committee’s Ranking Member for the 112th Congress.

First elected in 1976, Rahall is currently serving his 18th term in the House of Representatives, and is recognized as the youngest-elected and longest-serving Member in the history of the House.

Rahall leads Democrats on the Committee, which has broad jurisdiction over the Nation’s highways, railways, airports, seaports, bus lines, and pipelines, as well as the Economic Develop-ment Administration (EDA), Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), Coast Guard, Army Corps of Engineers, and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

As a Member of the Committee, Rahall has been a key architect in the formulation of every Federal highway bill since coming to Congress, including the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA), the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), and the Surface, Ac-countable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU).

Rahall has worked diligently over the last three decades to provide Federal support to build better highways, safer bridges, modern water and sewer systems, and flood control projects. He knows from the experiences in his District the value of the ARC and the EDA, entities that provide criti-cal support through competitive funding pro-grams to help communities build their economic bases and create jobs. Rahall has also worked closely with FEMA in response to natural disas-ters affecting his constituents.

Waterways Council, Inc. is a national public policy organization advocating for a modern and well-maintained national system of ports and in-land waterways. The group is supported by carriers, shippers, port authorities, shipping associations, and waterways advocacy groups from all regions of the country. Vvsit waterwayscouncil.org. IP

Rahall Supports Waterways InvestmentIn this brief interview with IP, Congressman Rahall offers his thoughts on Federal support of the inland ports and waterways system.

Congratulations on your WCI Leadership Award. Can you describe for our readers when your relationship with that organization began and how it has developed?I have served on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for 35 years – my entire tenure in Congress. Over the past three decades, I have worked with a variety of waterways organi-zations from across the country. These organizations bring a breadth of experi-ence and expertise that is critical for crafting legislation that impacts ports and harbors. Why you have fo-cused on America’s marine highway as a potential force, both economically and logistically?The inland water-way system is criti-cal for the efficient and economically-viable movement of bulk commodities, such as coal mined in the State of West Virginia, to market. Similarly, pru-dent investments in our nation’s infrastructure systems, in general, make wise economic sense. The Nation’s system of roads, bridges, and water-re-lated infrastructure, including the inland waterways system, are needs that even Americans of vastly different political leanings agree deserve greater Federal investment – not less. After all, the jobs created by such investment are not Republican jobs or Democratic jobs – they are American jobs – and benefit the nation as a whole. How will recent budget cuts impact waterways?Over the past year, I have often expressed concern about the effects of the proposed cuts to vital transportation and infrastructure spending pro-grams. I believe these cuts are penny-wise and pound-foolish in terms of impacts to American families and our overall quality of life. This is true, as well, for the cuts to the budget of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – which has weathered a dramatic cut of almost 20 percent in the current fiscal year, and is expected to be reduced even further for the upcoming fiscal year. These dramatic cuts to the Nation’s premier water resources agency will have consequences – forcing the Corps to walk away from or delay the construction or maintenance of vital navigation, flood control, and environ-mental restoration projects that benefit the nation as a whole. IP


It was a banner year for container volumes at the Port of New Orleans. Year-end figures show

the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal moved 476,413 TEUs (twenty-foot-equivalent units), up 11.6 percent compared to 2010 - the Port’s previous record-setting year – and up 46 percent compared to volumes just two years ago.

“Two back-to-back record-setting years is a testament to the hard work of our customers and terminal operators,” said Port President and CEO Gary LaGrange. “Our volumes are attributed to a strong export market, particularly chemicals and agricultural products; coffee and apparel were strong commodities on the inbound side.”

The Port also added a new Latin American container service in 2011 and a new container carrier, as CMA CGM returned to the Port. The shipping line joins Mediterranean Shipping Com-pany, Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk, Seaboard Marine and CSAV in serving the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal.

New Orleans Terminal and Ports America jointly operate the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal.

An expansion is underway throughout the terminal, as the Port invested $38 million in 2011 alone into the facility, including the delivery of two new container gantry cranes and the addition of more than four acres to the terminal’s marshal-ling yard. Both projects increase efficiencies and terminal capacity.

In December, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Trans-portation John Porcari awarded the Port a $16.7 million federal grant to build the Mississippi River

Intermodal Terminal – a specialized, 12 acre freight rail yard on the terminal - which will capitalize on New Orleans’ unmatched rail access to six Class One railroads.

“We continue to reap the benefits of invest-ments we have made at the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal,” LaGrange said. “We will continue to work hard to stay a few steps ahead of the market’s demand as the container trade grows in the Gulf of Mexico.”

River Maintenance funds Allows Dredging To Commence

Port of New Orleans officials are hailing Loui-siana’s Congressional delegation for their efforts to direct vital maintenance dollars to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to restore the Lower Missis-sippi River deep-draft channel to its authorized dimensions.

Nationwide, the Corps received $1.72 billion from the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2012, which was signed by President Obama Dec. 23. Of that, $55 million of an overall $534 million dedication for operation and maintenance of inland waterway systems nationwide was directed to the Lower Mississippi River to restore the channel from Baton Rouge to the Head of Passes at the mouth of the River.

“This is tremendous news not only for the Port of New Orleans and the local maritime community, but for the growers, producers and manufacturers in the 32 states that depend on the Lower Missis-sippi River to get their goods to global markets,” said LaGrange.

The Louisiana delegation in both the House and Senate worked tirelessly in a bi-partisan fashion to secure the additional funds, which brings the Corps’ budget for operation and maintenance on the Lower Mississippi River to more than $126 million this year, including the Corps’ original $72.6 million budget for the waterway. Over the last decade, the average cost to maintain the Lower Mississippi River is about $104 million.

“The entire Louisiana delegation is to be commended for their efforts to secure the money necessary to fully restore the Lower Mississippi River’s channel to its full dimensions,” LaGrange said. “The River serves more than two-thirds of the nation’s consumers and moves about 450 million tons of international cargo worth about $114 billion annually.”

That cargo consists of two-thirds of the U.S. grain exports and is vital to other commodities, such as export coal, petroleum products, and U.S. refining capacity – along with cargo activity at the Port of New Orleans.

U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu and U.S. Rep. Rodney Alexander – both members of their respec-tive chambers’ Appropriations Committee, were instrumental in securing the additional funding. However, all members of the delegation, including: Sen. David Vitter, Rep. Cedric Richmond, Rep. Steve Scalise, Rep. Charles Boustany, Rep. Bill Cassidy, Rep. John Flemming and Rep. Jeff Landry were supportive of the efforts.

The Congressionally authorized dimension of the River’s shipping channel is 750 feet wide by 45 feet deep. This week, 42-foot draft restrictions

Mediterranean Shipping Company’s Maeva, a 1,066-foot container vessel capable of carrying more than 8,000 TEUs, docks at the Port of New Orleans’ Napo-leon Avenue Container Terminal. 2011 proved to be banner year for the terminal, setting a new record for container volumes at 476,413 TEUs - up 11.6 percent compared to 2010.

Port of New Orleans Boasts Record Container Volumes

were placed at Southwest Pass, the main channel for ships entering the River. Also, the channel’s width has deteriorated since the high river levels of 2011 to less than 150 feet wide in some sections of the channel.

The Corps’ dredge Wheeler arrived at Southwest Pass Wednesday to begin dredging operations and the additional funds will allow the Corps to hire private dredges to begin work shortly on areas near the mouth of the River and on crossings between Baton Rouge and New Orleans where shoaling is a concern.

While the immediate efforts have been focused on obtaining additional funding to maintain the River for the current fiscal year, Port officials have worked closely with the Louisiana delegation to reform the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund, which places a .125 percent tax on imports arriving at U.S. ports to maintain federal waterways. In a typical year, only 50 percent to 60 percent of the funds generated by the tax are spent on dredging and related harbor mainte-nance expenses nationwide. The rest of the proceeds are not being spent for their intended purpose. The Port and maritime stakeholders are supportive of HR 104 by Rep. Boustany, called the Realizing America’s Maritime Promise Act, or RAMP Act. The legislation essentially ensures that amounts credited to the HMTF are used for harbor maintenance.

Record Year for NoLA Cruise Passengers

Last year also marked a record for cruising from the Port of New Orleans, as the Port handled 736,908 passengers – besting the previous record in 2004 by 2,265 passengers. The 2011 numbers also beat the 2010 passenger count by more than 39 percent.

The cruise industry is big business for the Port and the New Orleans tourism industry. In 2011, the total direct local economic impact of the industry is estimated at $132.1 million – or $937,000 per ship call. Economic impact studies determined the industry contributes more than $226 million overall to the state, supporting more than 3,000 jobs. And those impacts will surely rise in the coming year with further increased activity.

In the fall of 2011, three new ships began calling on the Port. In November, the 2,052-passenger Carnival Elation arrived to sail year-round four- and five-day cruises to Cozumel and Progresso, Mexico. The 2,974-passenger Carnival Conquest returned to New Orleans replacing the Carnival Triumph to sail year-round seven-day western and eastern Carib-bean cruises. And Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas – a 3,114-passenger cruise ship, the largest ever to home-port in New Orleans – began sailing seasonal seven-day western Caribbean itineraries Nov. 12. The three new ships joined Norwegian Cruise Line’s 2,018-passenger Norwegian Spirit, which sails seven-day western Caribbean itineraries, as well. NCL plans to replace the Norwegian Spirit with the larger 2,348-passenger Norwegian Star this fall.

In addition to the popular cruise lines sailing regu-larly from New Orleans to the Caribbean, inland cruis-ing on the Mississippi River will return in 2012, as well. American Cruise Line will debut a new sternwheeler built for navigating the Mississippi River named the Queen of the Mississippi in June and Travel Dynamics International will begin sailing its 257-foot Yorktown coastal ship from New Orleans in November 2012. In April, the Great American Steamboat Company will return the American Queen to New Orleans and Blount Small Ship Adventures will begin sailing aboard the Grande Caribe in March. IP


The Dredge G.D. Morgan, owned by Weeks Ma-rine, dredges the New Orleans Harbor for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in July 2011.

www.3riversmarineandrail.com


US Rep. John Mica Named AAPA Port Person Of Year

Congressman John Mica (R-FL) will be honored on March 20 as the American Association of Port Authorities’ (AAPA) Port Person of the Year during the association’s 100th anniversary Spring Conference event, March 19-20, at The Renaissance Washington, DC Downtown Hotel.

Celebrating its first century as the Western Hemisphere’s leading trade association representing port authorities, AAPA selected Rep. Mica to receive its most prestigious annual award based on his leadership of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, six transportation subcommit-tees (several of which are crucial to America’s seaports), and his staunch support of maritime and port infrastructure policy and investment priorities.

“Chairman Mica understands that increased federal fund-ing in land- and water-side transportation infrastructure is an essential and effective utilization of limited resources that will pay long-term dividends through increased trade, sustainable job creation and tax revenues,” said AAPA President and CEO Kurt Nagle. “We greatly appreciate leaders who understand and support our industry, and I’m very pleased AAPA is honor-ing Chairman Mica with the ‘Port Person of the Year’ award for our centennial year.”

Rep. Mica represents the 7th Congressional District of Florida and is currently serving his 10th term in office. Last July, he rolled out an outline for The American Energy and Infrastructure Act, which for the first time in surface transpor-tation reauthorization history includes a maritime title. IP

Port of Cleveland’s Cargo Volume Up 31 percent

The Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority reported that overall cargo tonnage increased 31 percent in 2011, largely the result of growth in steel, iron-ore and oversized “project” cargo handled by Port facilities.

The Port handled 3.4 million tons of cargo last year – the highest volume since 2008. General cargo volume rose 16 percent as both steel and project cargo posted increases; while bulk cargo increased 33 percent, as more iron ore was handled by Port operations.

“Trade through our port showed strong growth in 2011, which is another indicator of an economic rebound under-way in our region,” said Port CEO Will Friedman. “With this momentum we are working harder than ever to develop better waterborne freight connections with global markets to help Ohio firms compete for and win business, and ultimately cre-ate new jobs.”

Overall tonnage transiting the St. Lawrence Seaway in-creased 2.5 percent in 2011.

Separately the Port Authority’s Board of Directors agreed to enter into a contract for nearly $3.9 million to construct an on-dock rail loop that will make the Port more competitive.

The Port selected Great Lakes Construction Company to build the 5,500 feet of additional track. The project is slated to be completed before the end of October, and was made possible by an Ohio Department of Development Logistics and Distri-bution Stimulus Loan of $3,025,000. The Port will fund the remainder of the project from its capital budget.

“We are excited with the rail expansion, which exemplifies the investments the Port is making to grow maritime opera-tions and spur economic activity in Greater Cleveland,” said Board Chair Bob Smith. IP

www.americanwaterways.com

www.gicaonline.com


US Congressman Jerry Costello, U.S. Department

of Transportation Deputy Secretary John Porcari, China Vice Minister of Maritime Affairs XU Zuyuan, SONG Dexing, Director of Water Transportation in China, Asst. Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs, Susan Kurland, US MARAD Admin-istrator David Matsuda and other US and Chinese public and private sector officials visited America’s Central Port in January.

The visit from the Assis-tant US Transportation Sec-retary, the Chinese minister and his colleagues was part of the fourth annual Transporta-tion Forum held in St. Louis and the surrounding area. The United States and China hold one of the forums each year, alternating between the two countries. Last year’s forum was held in China. The forums emphasize the importance of transportation infrastructure as a foundation for economic development.

Congressman Costello

and the Port’s Executive Director Dennis Wilmsmeyer briefed the US and Chinese officials prior to taking a tour of the Port’s develop-ments. During the briefing, Costello talked about the conversion of the former Price Army Support Center for commercial development by America’s Central Port. He told the Chinese officials on Wednesday that the focus of the overall effort here is to create jobs. The foreign trade zone, which is located at the Port, offers one-stop service for Chinese companies looking to locate in the United States with an ex-cellent location in the middle of the country. This puts the Port above and beyond anyone else to provide distribution services in the United States. Wilmsmeyer noted that the

port is a two-day drive from 70 percent of the nation’s population.

Wilmsmeyer also pointed out the significance of the new S Harbor project to both US Transportation officials and the Chinese. The US Department of Transportation recently awarded the Harbor project $8.5 million dollars, combined with a previous $6 million TIGER grant for the

project. The South Port under construction is below river from Lock and Dam 27, the

southernmost such facility on the Mississippi River.

The new South Harbor will handle imports and exports of products produced in the Midwest and will create the most northerly rail, river and roadway freight transfer loca-tion south of the Mississippi River lock system. IP

America’s Central Port Hosts Chinese Delegation

(Above) Congressman Costello presents a gift to the VM of a Jefferson Era Desk Compass. The VM presented the Port a crystal sailboat from China.

(Top) The Congressman briefed USDOT and Chinese officials on the Port.


Great Lakes Shipyard to Upgrade Interlake’s Tug Dorothy Ann

Rolls-Royce Commercial Marine has been contracted to upgrade Interlake Steamship Company’s Tug Dorothy

Ann. The 124-foot, 7,200-horsepower Z-drive tug is the largest Z-drive ATB tug built to date in North America and is mated to the barge Pathfinder. The duo is engaged in hauling bulk commodities on the Great Lakes.

Great Lakes Shipyard will perform the work under its new affiliation as the Rolls-Royce Regional Service Center on the Great Lakes. The upgrade will convert the Dorothy Ann’s Rolls-Royce/Ulstien azimuth thrusters from fixed-pitch to controllable-pitch propellers. The project will include replacement of the lower drive units as well as all thruster control systems on the vessel. This conversion will improve the reliability of the vessel’s propulsion system equipment and reduce overall maintenance costs.

Great Lakes Shipyard Delivers Workboat for Port of Milwaukee Great Lakes Shipyard, Cleveland, OH, recently completed

construction and delivery of a 60-foot work boat for the Port of Milwaukee. Great Lakes Shipyard was awarded the contract by the city in June 2011.

The vessel was designed by Jensen Maritime Consultants, Seattle, WA, to include general harbor work, icebreaking, salvage, and dive operation capabilities. The workboat is equipped with a DMW Telescopic Boom Marine crane; it also has specialized lighting and equipment for harbor security work.

The workboat is powered by a single 405 HP Cummins QSK11 Tier II diesel engine and has a maximum speed of 10 knots.

Great Lakes Shipyard, a division of The Great Lakes Towing Company, operates a full-service shipyard specializing in all types of vessel new construction, repairs, and modifications. A major Shipyard expansion project at its Cleveland location is now well-underway and includes a new state-of-the-art 770-ton Marine Travelift; the largest on the Great Lakes, second largest in the Western Hemisphere, and the third largest in the World. Current projects include the complete construction and delivery of a work boat for the Port of Milwaukee and contracts with SEACOR Holdings, Inc. to build two tugs for operation at the Hovensa Oil Refinery in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. IP

www.dredgingcontractors.org


Great Lakes Shipyard upgraded the Dorothy Ann for Rolls Royce.

Great Lakes Shipyard recently delivered this workboat to the Port of Milwaukee.


Chris Dahlberg was appointed by the St. Louis County Board to a six-year term on the Duluth Seaway Port Authority Board of Commissioner. He fills the vacancy created when Commissioner Bill Kron’s term ended in December. Dahlberg, who was elected to the St. Louis County Board in 2008, had served as a member of the Duluth City Council in 1992-94. President of the Dahlberg Law Office, P.A., he is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Law School. Dahlberg has been a member of the U.S. Army Reserves for 23-plus years. He currently holds the rank of major and is with the Brigade Judge Advocate attached to the 330th Medical Brigade, Fort Sheridan, Ill. He served in Baghdad in Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2004-05.

Lifting Gear Hire Corporation (LGH) announced that it has 40- and 50-ton hand chain hoists available for immediate rental through its 13 US warehouse locations. The availability of the hand chain hoists will provide LGH’s current and prospective customer base with a more durable and rugged hand chain hoist for the tougher jobs. “Providing our customers with a variety and expansive selection of equip-ment is essential in helping them find the right piece of equipment for the job,” said Tony Fiscelli, President of Lifting Gear Hire Corporation. Now, LGH can offer hand chain hoists ranging from 1 to 50 tons.

The Toledo-Lucas County Port Author-ity has released the Port of Toledo 2011 Tonnage report, which indicates a 6% increase in tonnage over the 2010 shipping season. 2011 was the highest tonnage sea-son recorded at the Port of Toledo since the 2007 season. Also included in the re-port is a summary of seaport tonnage from 1947-2011. The 6% increase is attributed to a variety of factors, which include:

• Additional on-boarding of new equip-ment such as the Mantsinen Material Handler

• Growth in bulk cargo shipments such as synthetic gypsum and mill scale

• Growth in inbound iron ore shipments• Significant growth from a variety of

terminals such as Shelley Liquid Division, Kuhlman Corporation and Hansen-Mueller

• Dock enhancements completed by BP in 2010 allowed the company to enjoy a full season of accommodating larger vessels in 2011

• Growth with project cargo such as wind turbines and refinery elements.

The 30th Annual Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Development Opportunities Conference will be held August 28-31, 2012, at Marriott’s Grand Hotel, Point

Clear, Alabama. For more information con-tact Agnes Zaiontz at [email protected] or 662-328-3286.

Simpson Strong-Tie announced its entrance into the concrete repair, protec-tion and strengthening business with the acquisitions of Baltimore-based Fox Industries Inc. and Switzerland-based S&P Clever Reinforcement Company.

“Simpson Strong-Tie has been in this industry for more than 15 years with its Anchor Systems product line and is excited to bring complementary product lines to our customers in the U.S. and in Europe,” said Terry Kingsfather, president of Simpson Strong-Tie.

Founded in 1969, Fox Industries manu-factures a complete line of cementitious, epoxy, urethane, elastomeric and polyes-ter coatings, grouts, mortars, adhesives, sealers, sealants, membranes and custom manufactured fiberglass parts for the marine, industrial, transportation, commer-cial building and public works industries. Customers interested in purchasing prod-ucts from Fox should contact the inside sales team in Baltimore at 888-760-0369.

Established in 1998, S&P Clever manu-factures epoxy resins and fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) materials for concrete and asphalt reinforcement. S&P reinforcement systems are manufactured from fiber made of materials, such as carbon, glass and aramid. The company also provides static design software to engineers and planning and design offices. S&P’s manu-facturing and distribution facilities are located in Switzerland, Poland, Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.

The St. Lawrence Seaway closed for the season on December 30, 2011, with the westbound vessel Algoma Spirit reaching Lake Ontario at 7:54 a.m. after having transited the locks on the St. Lawrence River. The Seaway’s 53rd navigation season commenced on March 22nd, and the system remained open for a record 284 days, exceeding by one day the previous record set in 2006.

The tug / barge combination John Spence / Niagara Spirit was the last vessel to transit the Welland Canal, clearing Port Colborne December 30th at 8:26 p.m. on its way to Lake Erie.

The St. Lawrence Seaway’s posi-tive momentum remained intact in 2011, with tonnage volumes rising by 2.5% to reach an estimated 37.5 million tonnes. Trade patterns exhibited a number of changes, most notably with iron ore and coal becoming export commodities due to strong overseas demand. Grain volumes

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decreased overall by some 6.4% due to a decrease in the amount of U.S. grain moving via the Seaway. Strong increases in the volume of bulk liquids, salt and scrap metal contributed to an overall cargo increase of 930,000 tonnes for the system’s 2011 season.

The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corpora-tion (SLSMC) announced the appointment of James Wilson to its Board for a three year term beginning January 27, 2012, as the representative for the steel and iron ore industries. Mr. Wilson currently serves as General Manager, Raw Materials, for ArcelorMittal Dofasco Inc. and has over 40 years’ experience within the iron ore and steel industries, spanning roles in research, production, and purchasing. A graduate of McMaster University, his career encompasses a di-verse range of progressively more senior assignments. He has served as a Director and President of Wabush Resources Inc. and as a Director for both the Arnaud Railway and the Wabush Lake Railway. Mr. Wilson is also a past Director of Quebec Cartier Mines (which became ArcelorMittal Mines Canada).

Terence Bowles, President and CEO of the SLSMC, welcomed the appointment of Mr. Wilson. “The iron ore and steel industries are vital to the Seaway’s sustain-ability, and collectively account for a third of our total cargo volume” said Mr. Bowles. “Mr. Wilson’s experi-ence within these industries will prove to be invaluable as he lends insight to the SLSMC’s Board. The next three years will be pivotal to the SLSMC’s continued development as a vital transportation artery, and Jim Wilson is a welcome addition to our Board.”

A recently published economic impact study, commissioned by Marine Delivers, demonstrates the significant role that the Great Lakes / Seaway system plays in supporting the Canadian and U.S. economies. Some 227,000 jobs and $34 billion in economic activity are supported by the movement of goods within the Great Lakes / Seaway waterway. Since its inception in 1959, over 2.5 billion tonnes valued in excess of $375 billion has been transported via the Seaway. For more information on the Seaway, including access to the full text of the economic impact study, please consult the www.greatlakes-seaway.com website.

The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) commends the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and its chairman, Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), for its commitment toward: a five-year reauthorization of federal surface transportation legislation; a freight mobility subtitle; a waterborne transportation title that seeks to fully use the federal Harbor Maintenance Tax for its intended purpose; pro-gram consolidation; streamlining project delivery; and to the aggressive timetable it has developed to secure passage of a final bill. “The bill introduced today, H.R. 7 – American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act – is a testament to Chairman Mica’s leadership and vision that improved transportation infrastructure, includ-ing in and connecting to seaports, is critical to our nation’s economy, employment gains and international competitiveness, and must be addressed when deter-mining core federal priorities and investments,” said AAPA President Kurt Nagle. “AAPA looks forward to working with Congress on timely passage of a final bill that includes strong maritime and freight provisions,” he added.

Port of New Orleans President and CEO Gary LaGrange was one of several witnesses testifying recently before a U.S. House of Representatives Ways and Means Subcommittee. He spoke in favor the RAMP Act, of H.R. 104, which would dedicated all proceeds of the Harbor Maintenance Tax to Harbor Maintenance Projects. The Harbor Maintenance Tax is a tax collected on imports, but a large portion of the tax is not used for Harbor Maintenance Projects. Meanwhile, U.S. harbors are under-maintained, result-ing in the full channel dimensions of America’s busiest

ports being available less than 35 percent of the time. Reduced channel dimensions could increase both the cost of shipping and the risk of grounding or collision. The RAMP Act was introduced by Rep. Charles Boustany (R-La), who is the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Oversight.

The Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor recently welcomed a rare January lake vessel to its dock. The James Kuber exports approximately 16,000 tons of lo-cal corn from port company Cargill to an ethanol plant in Sarnia, Ontario. “This is the first lake vessel that we’ve had call on the port in January since 2006,” said Peter Laman, port director at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor. “The mild weather has kept ice from forming on the lakes, which generally limits shipping this time of year. The international shipping season officially closed last month, but the port is open year-round. Businesses can still ship and receive cargo on river barges or lake vessels, as long as the weather and ice allow them to get through.”

The James Kuber was built in 1953 as a steamship but, in 2008, it was converted into a self-unloading Articulated Tug/Barge (ATB). The conversion removed nearly 70 feet of the ship’s length, including the engine room and living area, and added a V-shaped notch at the back of the vessel where a tugboat locks into place. ATBs have the hauling capacity of large ships but are powered by tugboats, a common method for rehabilitating older ships.

The port’s international shipping season officially ended on Dec. 30, when locks on the St. Lawrence Seaway were closed for the winter. Weather-permit-ting, vessels can continue to run limited routes within the Great Lakes that do not pass through locks. The seaway reopens to ocean vessels in late March.

Cargill joined the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor in 1979. The company operates a 7-million bushel grain elevator, primarily exporting corn, wheat and soybeans from local farmers to world markets. Cargill is an international producer and marketer of food, agricul-tural, financial and industrial products and services. Founded in 1865, the privately held company employs 142,000 people in 66 countries.

Shipbuilding, ship repair and maritime jobs in Alaska have an even brighter future as Alaska Ship and Drydock Inc. (ASD) and Vigor Industrial jointly announced their intent to make ASD a Vigor company. ASD intends to transition its business and assets to Vigor pending approval of the transfer of ownership by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Author-ity (AIDEA), the owner of the Ketchikan Shipyard where ASD is based. The private companies hope to finalize their agreement on or before March 1st.

KritiKal Solutions has designed a Container Number OCR system which automatically identifies, records and verifies the Container ID number for both fixed and moving scenarios. The system facilitates an effective management and operations at gates, yards, and loading and unloading zones of modern ports and ter-minals. The system is designed for efficient container loading and unloading ensuring accurate container movement. The Container Number OCR system is based on KritiKal’s proprietary OCR Engine Platform. The underlying OCR engine has been tuned to suit the requirements of Container Number OCR system for translating images of printed text (here container ids captured using camera) into machine-readable form with a standard encoding scheme with close to 100% accuracy. The Container Number OCR system can be easily integrated with KritiKal’s proprietary Automatic License Plate Reading System (KLiPR) for integrated solutions for a port/ container terminal. The integrated system is suited for capturing, recognition and storing the Container No/ IDs along with License plate of the vehicles. The integrated system provides maximum access control and security management. IP


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The L

ast W

ordA Revealing Look at Industry Leaders

How did you become involved in this industry?As a Coast Guard veteran, with several years of experience in the Eighth Coast Guard District, I had significant contact and experience with the inland waterways system and those that operate within that system. I also worked for a short time in the marine salvage field. I wanted to continue to work in the maritime industry somewhere on the Gulf Coast. So, when the GICA position became available, I thought I’d be a good fit. I’m pleased that the GICA Board of Directors thought so, too. What industry groups have you been involved with in your career?I have worked a bit with practically all who GICA works with now: AWO, RIETF, GNOBFA, TTWA, ASA and the various harbor safety committees across the Gulf of Mexico and up the rivers. Additionally, in both my Coast Guard and FEMA assignments I got to know much of the federal, state and local agencies I liaise with now. What exciting things is GICA working on?Recent technology-based efforts to improve the distribution of real-time information to GICA members have been exciting. For instance, we’ve partnered with an AIS ship tracking provider and now GICA members can view a geographic presentation of issues that may affect their GIWW operations on our website. It hopefully helps members in voyage planning and in discussing possible service delays with their customers. So far the feed-back on the new system has been great.

Additionally, GICA is working closely with the State of Louisiana on coastal protection planning. Recognizing the importance of a working coast, GICA and other navigation industry reps are being consulted as they plan for some $50B of coastal protection work over the next 50 years. Clearly it is in the interests of the intracoastal canal for the state to restore and maintain a coast. It is exciting work that will have impacts for decades and I suspect will someday replicated across the other Gulf States as sea level rise and erosion progress. Brag on your family a bit.My wife, Elaine, and I have five great kids and two granddaughters. The “bigs,” Jenna, Andy and Will, are all grown, and on their own doing good things. We also have the “littles,” 11-year old twins, Anna Kate and John, who keep us very busy in New Orleans. Elaine is an engi-neer, currently managing a challenging hur-ricane protection project with the New Orleans District, USACE. What was your favorite project or assignment you’ve been involved in during your career?I worked for FEMA, for a few years, help-ing direct Gulf Coast recovery efforts after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. It was very rewarding and satisfying to be able to provide

affected communities and individuals with rebuiling funding and direct assistance (like temporary housing), as they tried to put their

lives and towns back together. I am very proud the FEMA staffs in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama that dedicated countless hours to assist the folks of the Gulf Coast and truly make a difference. What was your least favorite? Unfortunately, that same FEMA job presented extraordinary bureaucratic obstacles which were extremely frustrating for

me and for the public we were trying to help. Much of that could be traced directly back to poorly written regulation and policy at the headquarters level that simply didn’t fit the situations we faced on the ground on the Gulf Coast. What’s the last song that played on your CD or MP3 player?Tom Petty, Tab Benoit, or something from the Treme soundtrack. What accomplishments are you most proud of?During my Coast Guard career, I was very proud of my efforts to help establish inter-national agreements that helped to facilitate counterdrug boardings at sea. This effort required direct negotiations at the United Nations and with individual nations in the Caribbean and South America. It was very interesting and rewarding to eventually arrive at signed agreements that positively impacted law enforcement at sea.

More recently, I’m very pleased with, and proud of, GICA’s improved system of making waterways information available to our mem-bers and waterways operators. I think it will reinvigorate interest in our Association and will be very useful, operationally, as we enter high water and hurricane seasons. If you could go back and tell your teenage self-one thing, what would that be?Don’t be so shy. Take the time to learn a sec-ond language and play a musical instrument.

What do you want to be when you grow up?I’m still thinking that somewhere there’s got to be a bait shop or a small marina, in a tropical setting, with my name on it. If you could make those in power at the local, state, and federal levels understand one thing about the inland port and waterways industry, what would it be?Infrastructure and maintenance are criti-cally important to our ports and waterways. Although I think some in government under-stand that, many don’t. Worse still, is that very few are willing to pitch in to find a solution to the problem of aging locks and inadequate dredging budgets. Our industry continues to do its part by proposing solutions that include a fair share of funding from fuel taxes; yet

matching those funds with adequate govern-ment support continues to be a challenge.

Additionally, I don’t know that officials at those three levels fully understand the impact our industry has on their respective economies. Jobs, exports, imports and untold numbers of supporting industry sectors are at risk when our waterways or ports close due to shoaling or lock outages. GICA recognizes that the Intracoastal Waterway and its tributar-ies are important connecting links between Gulf Coast ports and inland ports. We work closely with several sister Associations, to drive these messages home. If you make the general public understand one thing about the inland ports and waterways industry, what would it be?Jobs, economies and our environment depend on safe, dependable and environmentally responsible waterways transportation. Last year’s high water event resulted in short term waterway closures that started to have significant effects on industries dependent on waterways transportation. Longer term closures could have meant negative effects jobs, the economy and the environment (as shippers shifted to other transportation modes which are costlier, have higher emissions and add to roadway congestion). GICA and others in our industry must continue to give voice to these points. What›s your favorite?Movie: ShaneBook: Too hard to chooseTV Show: Any Law and Order episodeSport: Practically anything on the water…diving, fishing, boating. What piece of equipment has not been invented yet, but will revolutionize the inland port industry when it is?Just blue-skying here: Highly efficient dredges that somehow can transport material quickly and cheaply to beneficial use sites would be a great invention. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?Like many folks, I think procrastination is my worst enemy. I’d love to be able to kick that bad habit. What was the first concert you ever attended?Grand Funk Railroad at the Dinner Key Auditorium, Miami, FL… a long time ago! Give us your thoughts on the inland port waterway industry, where it has been, and where it is going. How can a publication like Inland Port Magazine help?As I mentioned, we have to ensure our indus-tries can depend on the waterways infrastruc-ture and consistent, effective maintenance of the system in order to continue to compete. Educating the public and our elected officials will be critical to this effort. I think Inland Port Magazine can certainly play a key role and help us do just that. IP

Jim StarkExecutive Director, Gulf Intracoastal Canal Association (GICA)

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