Category: Maritime

Photo from: https://www.americanpatriotholdings.com/ is a rendering of shipping containers on a container barge on the Mississippi River with surrounding landscape of trees, water, and blue sky dotted with small puffy white clouds.

A Marine Freight Renaissance?

Many major cities around the world were founded on marine transportation corridors. St louis lays claim to this history and is working towards revolutionizing container freight movement in the region. Read about the promising and long-awaited Container on Barge (COB) development for the Mississippi River in the KSDK.com article “New St. Louis port bringing container ships up the Mississippi will revolutionize Midwest shipping, officials say”. The article is available at this link. (Photo credit: American Patriot Holdings, LLC.)

Personified corn cob with husks peeled back. Accompanied by text "Corn Belt Ports". Wavy water depicted along bottom of frame.

Corn Belt Ports on the Mississippi River gain federal recognition on principal U.S. ports list

Three new Port Statistical Areas in the tri-state area of Illinois, Iowa and Missouri made their debut on the principal U.S. ports list: the Illinois Waterway Ports and Terminals (ILWW), the Mid-America Port, and the Mississippi River Ports of Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois (MRPEIWI). Combined, the new Port Statistical Areas accounted for more than 31 million tons of freight in 2019, ranking as the 22nd largest port in the United States. That’s similar in size to the port of Tampa, FL. Read the full article at WQAD8.com. (Image from: https://growhancock.com/partnership_with_psa/)

Image of map showing U.S.A. Marine Highway Routes

America’s Forgotten Marine Highway Network That Could Green Global Freight Transport

“The U.S. maritime industry has long been a neglected sector and has not received as much attention as transformation in road transport (e.g., electric and autonomous trucking) and air transport (e.g., the development of electric and autonomous cargo drones). The electric and autonomous shipping revolution is being driven primarily by China and Scandinavian countries. With the U.S., having some of the largest investments in battery technologies and alternative fuels, there is an opportunity to build a Marine Highway as a Green Marine Highway, using the power of breakthrough technologies from hubs like Silicon Valley, Massachusetts and a range of other emerging maritime innovation centers.” (-Nishan Degnarain, a Forbes contributor.) Read full article on the Forbes website.

Multiple MAFC states benefit from Marine Highway Funding

Continued efforts in developing the marine freight system across the MAASTO region are paying off. Funds have specifically been granted to ports in Indiana, Kentucky and Illinois. Neighboring states, upstream and downstream MAASTO states will also benefit from this funding. On June 15, 2020 U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao Announced $9.5 Million in Grants for America’s Marine Highways. Read more about it on the Maritime Administration (MARAD) website.

USDA Quantifies Impact of Aging Inland Waterways Infrastructure

Article by THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE 2019-08-28 19:27:06

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has released a study that quantifies the cost-savings and competitive advantages that would accrue from investing in long-delayed improvements to inland waterways locks and dams on the Upper Mississippi and Illinois River system.

The study, Importance of Inland Waterways to U.S. Agriculture, addresses the critical connection between the inland waterways and the competitiveness of American agriculture in global markets. View full article at: The Maritime Executive website.

U.S. Department of Transportation Announces Nine New Marine Highway Project Designations

WASHINGTON, DC –  The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) today announced the designation of nine Marine Highway Projects and a Marine Highway Route that will benefit Connecticut, Florida, Michigan, New York, Oregon, Texas, Virginia, Washington State and American Samoa. Marine highways are navigable waterways that can be used as alternate options to traditional shipping methods. Visit U.S. Department of Transportation website to view the entire article: www.maritime.dot.gov

Mississippi flooding’s impact on freight economy spreads downstream

The Mississippi River has been swollen for several months, disrupting commerce up and down its 2,300-plus miles. Historic flooding has ruined billions of dollars worth of crops and farmland in the Midwest, and the damage has been spreading downstream, all the way to Louisiana. The flooding has also damaged levees, dams, bridges and roads, putting stress on the commercial river traffic that is crucial to American industry. To read full article, click here.

(Article from Freight Waves: https://www.freightwaves.com/news/mississippi-floodings-impact-on-freight-economy-spreads-downstream)

Midwest flooding ripples through economy, transportation

Flooded farm near Canton, Missouri on May 30, 2019. Photo: Captain Justin Collis/U.S. National Guard

For months, farmers and ranchers along the Missouri River from eastern Nebraska through western Iowa haven’t been able to rebound from major flooding that destroyed billions of dollars of crops, cattle and property. The flooding situation has worsened due to heavy mid-spring rains that caused the Mississippi River and many of its tributaries from St. Louis to the Gulf Coast to swell beyond normal levels. Read full article at Freightwaves.com.

MAFC Releases Report Looking at the Impact of Upper Mississippi River Lock and Dam Shutdowns on State Highway Infrastructure

The Mid-America Freight Coalition (MAFC) has released a report on the impact lock and dam closures along the Upper Mississippi River would have on the parallel highways based on the increased truck numbers required to move displaced agricultural products.

The Mississippi River is a critical corridor for transportation of agricultural products and, in turn, is critical to the economies of the states that utilize the river to transport these trade goods. Five of the MAFC region’s states are dependent on the Upper Mississippi River to move the majority of their agricultural products.

Movement through the Upper Mississippi is facilitated through locks and dams, all of which were constructed between the 1930’s and late 1950’s. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) estimates that there are over $1 billion in backlogged maintenance costs for these structures. Given the age and maintenance backlog, a failure at any of these facilities, especially the southernmost, would divert agricultural products to truck or rail.

The report assesses the total impact of such closures and then demonstrates how the cost the closures, or improvements designed to mitigate their impact on the highway side, compare with the cost of improving Upper Mississippi River control structures.

Download the Report.

Perry Testifies in Support of Continued Funding for HAP

MAFC Program Administrator, Ernest Perry, PhD
MAFC Program Administrator, Ernest Perry, PhD

MAFC Program Administrator, Ernest Perry, PhD, testified last week to members of the Assembly Transportation Committee for the State of Wisconsin in support of continued funding for the Harbor Assistance Program (HAP). In his statement, Perry emphasized a multiagency effort that has been taking place for over three years to to increase the freight and economic activity at Wisconsin ports. Wisconsin ports are responsible for the health of a large part of the state’s economy and will have an increasingly important role in the future. The support provided by HAP funds has been significant in providing tangible benefits to the state’s port infrastructure and will continue to be a much needed asset to ensure the sustainability of this important system moving forward.

Perry’s complete statement can be downloaded here.