The view from an icebreaker on the channel between the Snell and Eisenhower locks near Massena, NY. Icebreakers have to crunch through ice for the Seaway to open on time. (Photo by David Sommerstein)
The St. Lawrence River is the only way for international shippers to bring cargo in and out of ports such as Duluth, Detroit and Chicago. The river’s frozen during the winter and the shipping channel is closed. The date it re-opens each spring is highly controversial because icy conditions can damage the shoreline. Critics say the government agency that runs the Seaway is sacrificing the environment to get ships to port earlier. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s David Sommerstein has more on this debate:
Transcript
The St. Lawrence River is the only way for international shippers to bring cargo in and out of
ports such as Duluth, Detroit and Chicago. The river’s frozen during the winter and the shipping
channel is closed. The date it re-opens each spring is highly controversial because icy conditions
can damage the shoreline. Critics say the government agency that runs the Seaway is sacrificing
the environment to get ships to port earlier. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s David
Sommerstein reports:
This year the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation plans to allow shipping starting
March 25th. But the spring thaw comes late to northern New York and the St. Lawrence River.
Even in late March, there can still be lots of ice, especially in bays and coves. And it’s a sensitive
time for fish.
“There’s many species of fish that begin their spawning activities very early, even before the ice
is out.”
Stephen Litwiler of New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation says a ship’s wake
can rattle the ice enough to gouge delicate habitat.
“The ice going up and down is scouring the shoreline and pushing water in and out of the shallow
marshy areas and it’s dislodging vegetation that’s critical for these habitats.”
The bobbing ice can be so bad it can damage people’s docks and homes along the river.
A chorus of politicians and interest groups, including New York’s two senators and the Mohawk
tribe that lives along the river, are calling on the St. Lawrence Seaway to postpone its March 25th
opening date. Just one week, they say, will give the ice time to melt. Stephanie Weiss directs the
citizens’ group Save The River. She says environmentalists fear the date is driven by the
shipping industry.
“People lose money, so when you have that situation when they’re trying as hard as they can to
open early, we think it just makes it difficult for them to make the safest possible decision.”
The decision is made by government agencies in the U.S. and Canada. Seaway administrator
Albert Jacquez makes the call for Washington.
“To be honest with you, if I was listening to the industry and only the industry, we wouldn’t even
be talking about this date. We’d be talking about opening a lot sooner.”
Jacquez says the Seaway balances commercial demand with weather conditions, thaw trends, and
environmental concerns when it chooses an opening date. Last year thick ice forced the Seaway
to postpone the opening for the first time ever. Save The River’s Stephanie Weiss says it always
needs to be delayed rather than damage the river’s ecology.
“It was too early last year and it might be too early this year. It’s difficult really for anyone to
know.”
Weiss says getting cargo ships in and out of Great Lakes ports one week earlier isn’t worth the
risk of damaging the St. Lawrence River’s fish and nature for good.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m David Sommerstein.