Tag: port

Seaway Opening Day Disputed

  • 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.

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Tightening Security on the Great Lakes

Since September 11th, the U.S. government has been closing security gaps in aviation. But maritime officials warn that security on our Great Lakes is even less certain. Recently the U.S. Coast Guard held an international conference in Cleveland on Great Lakes security. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Schaefer reports:

Transcript

Since September 11, the U.S. government has been closing security gaps in aviation. But maritime officials warn that security on our Great Lakes is even less certain. Recently the U.S. Coast Guard held an international conference in Cleveland on Great Lakes security. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Schaefer reports:

On September 11, about 55 commercial U.S. and foreign freighters were cruising the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway. Even as the nation’s airports were being closed, U.S. Coast Guard officials were ordered to stop and search those vessels. It took two days for the search to be completed. Commander James Hull heads the Coast Guard’s 9th District, which oversees shipping in the Great Lakes region. He says that action alerted the Guard to a serious problem.

“Didn’t know exactly where all those ships were. AIS system solves that.”

AIS is a new communications protocol now being developed by the International Maritime Organization. Using a global positioning system, ships equipped with AIS will be able to transmit their exact location – and identity – to other vessels and maritime authorities. But so far, the system hasn’t been widely adopted. And that’s just the first security risk the Coast Guard discovered.

“We had people asking how you drive the ships and how you get training?”

As the weeks went by, the list of vulnerable areas grew. Nuclear power plants located along the lakeshore, ports and harbors, bridges, tunnels, and locks. Ships carrying hazardous cargo and those from countries with known terrorist links. And then there are the thousands of cargo containers shipped daily from ports around the world.

“Ambi here?”

27-hundred reservists were called up to assist the Coast Guard in patrolling and monitoring sensitive areas. The federal government allocated more than 220-million dollars in additional funds. But four months after the terrorist attacks, more than 50-percent of the Coast Guard’s efforts are still being spent on security. The Guard’s original mission – to guide maritime operations, assist in search and rescue, and help clean up environmental problems – has been largely overshadowed. Nonetheless oversight of commercial shipping is part of the Coast Guard’s job. Goods shipped on the Great Lakes are worth more than 742-billion dollars a year to the U.S. economy. Most of those goods and raw materials enter or leave the Great Lakes in bulk shipments and in containers that are off-loaded directly from ships. Dr. Steven Flynn is a former Coast Guard Commander and a Senior Fellow with the National Security Studies Program at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York City. He says a disruption to Great Lakes shipping could have wide-reaching consequences for the entire U.S.

“And so if we have another incident…we’re still extremely vulnerable, we’re still not out of the woods on this here – that if it happens in those sectors, my fear is not just the consequence of seeing another sight like I saw on September 16 after the attack, but also is the disruption that would come from happening within those sectors.”

Those disruptions could also severely hamper the Canadian economy, which ships much of its grain and steel through the Great Lakes. As the U.S.’s largest trading partner and nearest neighbor, Canada already shares jurisdiction over Great Lakes resources through the International Joint Commission. Now government officials on both sides of the border say it’s more important than ever to work together.

(1B 258 Streeter Integrated border enforcement)

John Adams is the Canadian Coast Guard Commissioner. He says the U.S. and Canada have recently signed a 30-point plan to jointly improve security on the Great Lakes, while allowing trade to flourish. Both governments have already instituted new 96-hour arrival notification requirements for vessels coming into North American ports. And they’ve extended the international maritime borders from 3-miles to twelve. But there are plenty of other new security plans yet to be adopted, ranging from identity cards and background checks to a point-of-origin system for clearing container cargo. And both countries will be sending representatives to the International Maritime Organization conference in London, where organizers hope to move ahead with new standardized strategies to keep global trade secure. For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Karen Schaefer.

Regulating Ballast Water as Pollution?

It looks as though the Environmental Protection Agency will reject the idea of requiring cargo ships to get pollution permits before they’re allowed to discharge ballast water. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham has more:

New Method Assails Exotic Hitchhikers

A new way to prevent rust in the ballast of ships might also prevent many alien aquatic animals from being transported from port to port. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham has details:

Tall Ships Set Sail

  • The Pride of Baltimore II will be plying the waters of the Great Lakes this summer along with dozens of other tall ships from all over the world. Photo by Thad Koza

A dozen or so tall sailing ships are dropping anchor at Great Lakes ports this summer as part of an event that’s both a race and a tour. The Tall Ships Challenge will be an opportunity for thousands of people to see replicas of a bygone era. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s David Barnett has more:

Paul Cox wrote and produced this story.

Related Links

Seaway Director to Push for Upgrades

The new director of the Saint Lawrence Seaway says he’ll push
Congress for money to overhaul the locks and lengthen the shipping
season. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Mike Simonson has more:

Great Lakes See Increase in Foreign Shipping

1998 was a record-setting year for foreign shipping on the Great Lakes.
And as the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Mike Simonson reports, the
shipping boom meant an unexpected increase in port jobs and grain trade
for Midwestern farmers:

Proposed Cuts May End Harbor Dredging

Maintenance of small recreational harbors on the Great Lakes could
be cut if the Army Corps (CORE) of Engineers has to trim its budget any
further. This month (October, 1998), Congress rejected a Clinton
Administration request to stop dredging small harbors. The Great Lakes
Radio Consortium’s Mike Simonson has the story: