Lack of rain in the Ohio River Valley and Upper Mississippi has caused sections of the Mississippi River to approach water level lows that have not been seen in over thirty years, reports the Wall Street Journal. The drying areas are vital for agriculture, oil, and building materials.
“America is going to shut down if we shut down,” said Mike Ellis, chief executive of Indiana-based American Commercial Barge Line LLC. He also indicated the Mississippi River watershed is being hit daily by breakups in which a tow hits a sandbar with such force that it disconnects from the barges it is transporting.
Shipping along the river has usually been less expensive than other forms of transportation; however, the smaller fleet has dramatically increased prices. For example, the cost of sending a ton of corn, soybeans, or other grains from St. Louis to southern Louisiana has jumped from $49.88 on September 27 to $105.85 on October 11, according to the report.
Engineers from the U.S. Army have started to deepen areas of the river to keep commercial traffic afloat. In addition to increased shipping prices, some ports and docks are no longer accessible from the water. The U.S. Coast Guard has also imposed restrictions on commercial boat and barge depths, as well as the number of barges that tow ships can pull.
Beyond shipping issues, the low freshwater levels in the river in Louisiana have made way for saltwater from the Gulf to begin gradually moving along the river floor, threatening the drinking water supply in communities around New Orleans. Full Story (Subscription Required)
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