AMO Currents - Sen. Levin introduces Harbor Maintenance Act of 2013 to remedy dredging crisis

AMO Currents - Posted: February 6, 2013

Sen. Levin introduces Harbor Maintenance Act of 2013 to remedy dredging crisis

Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) Feb. 4 introduced the Harbor Maintenance Act of 2013, which would require the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) to spend what it takes in each year on dredging and harbor maintenance. The bill, S. 218, had 28 cosponsors on the date of its introduction.

S. 218 is companion legislation to the Realize America's Maritime Promise (RAMP) Act, which was introduced by Rep. Charles Boustany (R-LA) in the House of Representatives in January. As of Feb. 4, the RAMP Act had 67 cosponsors.

Currently, the HMTF spends only one of every two tax dollars it collects for dredging on dredging, the Great Lakes Maritime Task Force (GLMTF) reported. The surplus, now approaching $7 billion, is used to mask the size of the federal deficit rather than maintain the nation's ports and waterways.

"Congress must quickly pass these bills," said GLMTF President Don Cree, Great Lakes special assistant to the national president of American Maritime Officers. "The largest U.S.-flag Great Lakes freighters were leaving behind more than 10,000 tons of cargo each trip by the end of 2012. The dredging crisis is obliterating the efficiencies of Great Lakes shipping."

The decades-old dredging crisis has been compounded by the drought that has sent the water levels on Lakes Michigan and Huron plunging to record lows and reduced drafts throughout the system.

"Initial forecasts suggest that vessels will have to load to less than 25 feet when transiting the St. Marys River this spring," said GLMTF 2nd Vice President John Baker, president emeritus of the ILA's Great Lakes District Council. "If that proves to be the case, oceangoing vessels loading export grain could leave almost 2,000 tons of cargo behind when they depart Lake Superior terminals."

"Plunging water levels are beyond anyone's control, but the dredging crisis is man-made," stressed GLMTF 1st Vice President James Weakley, president of Lake Carriers' Association. "In this century, the Corps has received enough money to reduce the backlog of sediment in the Lakes in only two years: 2008 and 2009. The backlog actually shrank from 18 to 15 million cubic yards during that time. But the budget has been woefully inadequate in the years that have followed and the backlog again tops 17 million cubic yards."

With 87 members, the GLMTF is the largest coalition to ever speak for the Great Lakes shipping community and draws its membership from both labor and management - representing U.S.-flag vessel operators, shipboard unions, including American Maritime Officers, longshore unions, port authorities, cargo shippers, terminal operators, shipyards, and other Great Lakes interests.