WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Rob Portman (R-OH) urged the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to direct additional resources to dredging and maintenance of the Great Lakes. In a letter to the Assistant Secretary of the Army and the Chief of Engineers at USACE, the senators called for funding to address the growing backlog of dredging needs, aging locks, and deteriorating breakwaters, piers, and jetties.

“The Great Lakes provide an essential transportation network for the movement of products, such as road salt, iron and steel products, coal, and agricultural commodities for domestic and international consumption,” the senators wrote. “We need to modernize and rebuild this infrastructure in order to realize the full economic potential the Great Lakes provide. Therefore, we urge the Corps to direct additional resources for Great Lakes navigation projects in FY2015. This additional support is sorely needed to address the lack of maintenance of our locks, breakwaters, and dredging needs, which continues to force vessels to light-load, grounds vessels, impedes safe navigation, and closes harbors.”

In Dec. 2014, Congress approved funding for efforts to improve navigation in the Great Lakes. As part of that legislation, Congress provided additional funding for the Corps to utilize on navigation projects around the country. The senators urged the Corps to allocate all available funds to the Great Lakes.

 

According to the State of Ohio, more than $10 billion of the state’s nearly $40 billion tourism industry is derived from counties along the Lake Erie shoreline. Further, the Great Lakes play a vital and cost efficient role in transporting food, materials, and other components necessary to aiding Ohio’s workers and businesses. But in order for this function to continue, the Great Lakes’ harbors and channels must be dredged; their breakwaters maintained; and their locks must operate effectively.


In addition to Brown and Portman, U.S. Sens. Mark Kirk (R-IL), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Al Franken (D-MN), Gary Peters (D-MI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Joe Donnelly (D-IN), and Ron Johnson (R-WI) signed the letter. Full text of the letter is below.

 

Dear Secretary Darcy and LTG Bostick:

 

The Great Lakes provide an essential transportation network for the movement of products, such as road salt, iron and steel products, coal, and agricultural commodities for domestic and international consumption. Utilizing the Great Lakes navigation system is often the least expensive option to ship these goods that are necessary to build our roads, power our homes, enable manufacturing, and feed our families. However, the Great Lakes infrastructure lacks adequate maintenance and the efficiency of the system is threatened by a growing backlog of dredging needs, aging locks, and deteriorating breakwaters, piers, and jetties. We need to modernize and rebuild this infrastructure in order to realize the full economic potential the Great Lakes provide.

 

On December 13, 2014, Congress approved an appropriations measure for fiscal year 2015 (FY2015) that provided funding to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) for a variety of water resource projects, including Great Lakes navigation.  In addition to allocating funds for specific projects, Congress also provided additional guidance and funding for the Corps to distribute to navigation projects across the country. As it was explained in the accompanying joint statement, Congress provided this additional funding because “Federal navigation channels maintained at only a fraction of authorized dimensions . . . results in economic inefficiencies and risks infrastructure failure, which can cause substantial economic losses.  Investing in operation, maintenance, and rehabilitation of infrastructure today will save taxpayers money in the future.”  Of this additional funding provided by Congress, the Great Lakes navigation projects are eligible for approximately $255 million, which includes additional support for navigation maintenance; small, remote or subsistence navigation; deep- and shallow- draft harbors and channels; and regional sediment management.

 

While we appreciate the additional support you provided to Great Lakes navigation maintenance in FY2014, a backlog of unmet navigation system maintenance remains across the Great Lakes. Therefore, we urge the Corps to direct additional resources for Great Lakes navigation projects in FY2015. This additional support is sorely needed to address the lack of maintenance of our locks, breakwaters, and dredging needs, which continues to force vessels to light-load, grounds vessels, impedes safe navigation, and closes harbors.

 

As you work to direct the FY2015 funds continues, we urge you to recognize the importance of investing in the Great Lakes navigation system and the critical impact it has on our economy. Thank you for your consideration.

 

Sincerely-- 

 

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