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April 18, 2005 -- Vol. 5 Issue 16 Written by Jack R. Simpson (unless otherwise noted), owner of J.R. Simpson & Associates, Inc. and contributing editor to The Waterways Journal.
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 In This Newsletter:
Quote of the Week
“An occasional thank-you goes a long way.” A Personal Note From Jack
 As reported by the Midwest Area River Coalition 2000 on April 15, the Water Resources Development Act (S. 728) moved a step closer [to reality] last week as it was passed by the Senate Environment & Public Works Committee. The bill was introduced April 6 by Sen. Christopher “Kit” Bond (D-Mo.). The legislation is now moving to the Senate Floor. The significance is in that Congress has not passed a WRDA in five years. We will not reiterate the names of all those senators whose names are on the bill. For a complete list, see our B&B of April 11. But it behooves us to let these legislators know that we appreciate their effort and that we appreciate efforts by all congressmen who thwarted attempts to weaken the S. 728 by adding a “Corps reform” amendment. The senators rejected that. It may be we have reached a time when our legislators are beginning to understand how important water resource development is and how beneficial it is to the economic well being of our nation. Perhaps they are beginning to have a “belly full” of counterproductive claims by environmentalists who would shelve progress that would produce jobs and enrich regions and substitute green space and preservation of endangered species. Maybe our overseers are beginning to realize that we can, in the U.S., improve the environment (which admittedly has been treated badly for a long time) and at the same time nurture business development that will allow our country to continue to grow. At least we hope that there is a rebirth of understanding that sees things that way. While it may seem to be a “reach”, there are a number of downsides that have been experienced in the U.S. over the past few decades. I will mention a few and probably will miss a few. The downside I will label as “environment” really came about in the way too many people suddenly made the environment a god. For some radicals, it is God. For 35 years, after the passage of environmental laws, we have ravaged business and spent countless billions on various aspects of the environmental program. Up to 30 percent of business project monies ended up going for environmental studies. Some 30 percent of water resource project monies also went for environmental mitigation. Now, for example, while the Upper Mississippi/Illinois rivers project calls for around $2.7 billion to modernize and maintain those waterways, the legislation calls for $5.5 billion to be spent (over a period of time) for improving the environment and ecosystem. So huge is the planned expenditure for environmental restoration for that project, that some critics have stopped being critical because they are getting far more money directed at restoration than they even dreamed for. That’s a switch! But I have labeled this a downside because in their effort to restore environment, critics have all but slammed the door on business development. One wonders if they realize where the money comes from to pay for all of the restoration. Government? Sure, but where does government get its money? The only way to go, in my estimation, is to continue to be a progressive businesslike nation and, at the same time, restore the environment that we should have been protecting much longer than we have been. It’s a winning combination. Another downside is the growing energy problem. This also ties in to the environmental movement and cannot be considered separately. Our nation, which has depended on fossil fuels for so long, faces huge problems in that growing demands for energy are pressing a need to develop other, environmentally friendly sources. There has been good progress in the area of solar. There has been tremendous progress in the technology used to build more environmentally friendly buildings. There has been great progress in the establishment of wind farms. Technology has produced hardware that will actually work well and produce energy cheaply enough to invite investment. Farmers are contracting to lease farm land where wind farms, because of their very nature, can exist while at the same time allowing the farmer to continue to harvest crops. The contribution of wind farms toward meeting growing energy needs is not to be downplayed. Where the downside comes in is that environmentalists, through legislation and thousands of lawsuits, have driven the oil-refining industry offshore. We have very few refineries in the U.S. anymore. They have also caused the restriction by legislation of oil drilling in offshore locations. And they have fought to put in place laws thought have actually driven hundreds of U.S. coal mines out of business. Coal is the largest energy source the U.S. has. New coal technologies have improved its use to a degree that we still are using coal, but during the process over three or four decades, we have eliminated jobs for thousands upon thousands of coal miners. They have also stopped nuclear plants. The new research into hydrogen power cells may someday bring a wonderful power-producing package to us, but in the meantime, growing energy demands are still outpacing energy-production growth. We are relying upon vast imports to meet our energy needs, which also put us in a precarious position in the world. Much of this problem can be laid to the environmentalists. Geothermal energy is insufficient. Fossil fuels are still the answer, though we need to insure that they are used in a manner that reduces pollution. Nearly a dozen years ago, we ran into what I will label a third major downside. The NAFTA card. The North American Free Trade Agreement has cost the U.S. 900,000 jobs. It was supposed to stop the movement of Mexicans into the U.S. by providing jobs “at home” and it hasn’t. Working conditions have not improved for the people of Mexico. Multinational companies have invested there because they have been able, for the most part, to disregard environmental issues, pay low wages, and ignore bad working conditions. Now, we’re told, that these same companies are shifting their efforts to China because labor is cheaper there. And have we solved the immigration problem along our southern border? Just listen to the radio and television talk shows and listen to the battle over controlling illegal immigration. Even now, with threats of terrorism in the air, we are not doing the job. We were told that the businesses that fled our country would be replaced by service jobs that would pay our people well. But now, guess what! Companies are outsourcing technical work to India and other countries. And they are importing foreign workers who will work for less. Many American workers are forced to train their own replacements. We have imported workers in our shipyards. The hew and cry of business is “reduce the costs — the bottom line” any way you can in order to satisfy stockholders and pay big dividends to upper management. This effort to reduce costs has turned into a marathon to reduce the number of crewmembers serving on the river. Vessels that once were crewed by anywhere from a dozen to 15 or more crewmen have been drastically reduced. Some vessels stopped carrying assistant engineers and cooks, and the battle cry increased over working hours. In Midwest states (Missouri for one), Mexican workers come in droves to replace roofs. A visit with these workers reveal that they are grossly underpaid, while the U.S. companies that hire them charge rates that are just as high as before. Presently we are working on another potential downside — a Central American trade deal. In 2004, our trade deficit with Canada and Mexico reached $111 billion, fully 12 times the size it was before NAFTA became a reality. We were told, said AFL-CIO president John Sweeney, that it would open markets for American goods and services, creating high-paying jobs at home. That hasn’t happened. Now they are promising the same for CAFTA, the Central American Free Trade Agreement. Another downside is the condition of the health insurance programs in America. Perhaps it is time for a government health program for all; I don’t know. But millions of American have no health insurance at all. The squeeze is on to deplete the little insurance others have. The cost of good health insurance is so high that many individuals who have been put out of good jobs by our other “downsides” haven’t the courage to leave lesser paying jobs to go out on their own. Many could and would start productive private businesses but cannot due to the cost of health care. They don’t want to lose event the poor programs that they have. Again, the press reveals health care as another major problem government must try to solve. Totally unrelated in nature to these previous downsides are the pressures brought to bear on the barge and towing industry because of changes in how agricultural products are being utilized (our imports are dropping steadily). Farmers are investing in the establishment of ethanol plants to enable them to earn more money for their crops, which now are being utilized more and more in the heartland to produce a gas additive rather than being moved to tidewater by barge for export. With the banning of another oxygenation additive for gasoline in recent years, the use of ethanol has become more popular. Add to this scenario the ongoing effort by groups to push the river industry off the river (like in the St. Paul area and other areas on the Upper Mississippi River). Add to this the drought that has been hanging over the Missouri basin. Climatologists now believe basin-wide drought is not really a problem, but still Missouri River water is scarce due to lack of snowfall and spring run-off in the Rockies. Basin communities up north are screaming for solutions that will provide them more water. Missouri River navigation is about dead, although it is not for lack of transportation needs (See Missouri River Update below). All of these downsides contribute to an atmosphere that has produced a genuine need to produce jobs and restore the inland waterways infrastructure. Union officials in the St. Louis area say that the Mississippi/Illinois project will produce 48 million man-hours of good-paying jobs for people in the region. This is vital. And it is because of the conditions produced by the “downsides” we listed above (along with others perhaps), we feel perhaps legislators are beginning to see that we must try to provide more jobs if our nation is to remain progressive and compete with the rest of the world. We are heartened by the attitude of Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) who wants to encourage passage of the WRDA and does not want to stymie it by introducing a Corps reform measure that would only muddy the waters. Trying to reform the Corps is another subject that we will take up later. But we will say that our government really is not capable of conjuring up an agency or an agency mix that has the skill to handle water projects as well as the Corps, with its more than 200 years of experience in waterway resource development. For Those Inclined To Pray
 Join our Prayer Circle so that you can tap into the prayerful support of the circle members. Membership and prayer requests are open to everyone. The activity of the Prayer Circle is confined totally outside of our weekly newsletter. With the exception of this segment, all contact is made, ultimately, through jacksimpson@littleriverbooks.com. To learn about the prayer circle click here. Advertising
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Mississippi River Locks Legislation Moves to Senate Floor (Editor’s note: Much of this story was presented under personal comments above, and further information about progress of the WRDA will come to us as it develops. However, there are still points to be made about the MARC 2000 announcement.) Passage of the bill by the Senate Environment & Public Works Committee (EPW) came about after attempts to further regulate the Corps in their planning, mitigation, and reviewing processes were rejected. Regulatory measures were included in the original language of the bill, and the Corps has taken steps to improve its analyses, accountability, and regulatory and mitigation compliance, MARC 200 reported. Sen. Obama and Sen. Bond, both members of the committee, spoke up against attempts to weaken a bill before it left the committee. The overdue and necessary projects, and the benefits they’d bring to communities, Obama asserted, should not be jeopardized by the issue of further regulations on the Corps. According MARC 200, Obama, an Illinois Democrat, [forsook] partisanship and indicated he would not be inclined to support the effort to threaten the [Upper Mississippi River/Illinois river] projects during committee markup. Aides revealed Obama’s request to sit on the EPW committee was linked to his commitment to bring about lock modernization. “I don’t want to slow the process down,” he said afterward. The-bipartisan Senate support demonstrates endorsement for an achievable plan to construct seven new locks and implement a Corps plan to improve the river’s ecosystem; the plan was developed over 13 years of study. With the Corps study of the river finished, said MARC 2000, results indicate new locks are needed at seven key sites immediately. The onus is now on Congress to act on those study results. Sen. Bond and his staff authored the bill through collaboration from both parties, necessary given that Congress has not passed a WRDA bill in five years.  The legislation follows a two-phased approach unveiled by the Corps late last year, where seven key lock and dam locations (#20-25 on the Upper Mississippi River, and Peoria and LaGrange on the Illinois Waterway) were pegged for immediate attention in a 15-year phase of a 50-year approach. The legislation calls for the largest ecosystem restoration plan ever for the Upper Mississippi River System, the MARC 2000 report concluded.
MARC 2000 Reports on Neglect of Upper Mississippi River System The Annual Report of the Inland Waterways User Board was released to Congress last month. From that report, MARC 2000 has developed a list of the top five endangered locks on the Upper Mississippi River System. The Midwest Area River Coalition 2000 said neglect and under-funding compromise “Anchor of Transportation Mode.” Here is MARC 2000’s report, issued under a Washington, D.C. dateline: Washington, DC — The top five endangered locks of the Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS) were pegged today [April 13] by MARC 2000, a diverse alliance including leading organizations in transportation, agriculture, organized labor, industry, economic development, recreation and other proponents; all advocate modernization of the 70-year-old infrastructure of locks & dams on the Upper Mississippi and Illinois rivers. The deteriorating UMRS locks requiring the most urgent attention are Locks & Dams 24 (Clarksville, Mo.); 11 (Dubuque, Iowa); 3 (Welch, Minn.); 19 (Keokuk, Iowa); and 27 (Granite City, Ill.). An emergency closure of Locks & Dam 27 occurred last summer. It received no funding in fiscal 2005. Not included on the list are Melvin Price Locks and Dam and Lock and Dam 15, both of which required emergency closures last August after their miter gates, the “doors” of the lock separating the river channel from the inner chamber, failed to work properly. River traffic originating or terminating on the UMRS accounts for approximately 40 percent of funding into the Inland Waterways Trust Fund, a national fuel tax depository intended for national waterway capital improvements. Only 15 percent is traditionally invested back into the UMRS. Continued under-funding of river infrastructure demonstrates the “fix-as-fail” measures the UMRS is subjected to, as the system has been taken for granted for decades. “We don’t need to invent an emergency for media coverage. Rehabilitation work, general construction, even operation and maintenance funding below project capability has become an annual pandemic,” stated Paul C. Rohde, president of MARC 2000. “Our infrastructure’s integrity has become compromised, but because this system has performed so admirably, unobtrusively from the public conscience, we presume our economic viability, environment, and public safety aren’t in jeopardy. Our infrastructure is facing an inability to maintain even the status quo as these older locks need more and more attention with age. We should be focusing on positioning ourselves for the future increase in agriculture exports, needed job creation and sustainability, and the overall increased transportation needs of the U.S. over the next 10-15 years.” The list was developed from the Annual Report of the Inland Waterways User Board, an account released to Congress last month. Explosion Investigation Shifts Focus to Propane Torch (an update) As we reported last week, it was decided that a boiler used to heat oil on a barge that exploded and sank on the Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal on January 19 could not have been the cause. Focus has now shifted, according to the “Daily Southtown”, to a propane torch that may have been used to heat lines use to pump out the cargo. During a Coast Guard hearing Friday, a special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, testified that a crewman aboard the barge had previously used a torch that way. Crewman Alex Oliva died in the incident. It is not know if Oliva used a torch that day. The barge was carrying 14,000 gallons of slurry oil to be delivered to Ameropan Oil Co. It had been loaded at an Exxon Mobile plant near Joliet. Oliva boarded the barge about an hour before it was to arrive at its destination. It was reported on April 18 that the raising the barge from the canal should take about a week. The two-week hearing was recessed Friday until the barge is raised and can be examined. W. P. Snyder Jr. Launched in 1918, Needs Help! The “Marietta Times” reports that the aging sternwheel, steam-powered towboat W. P. Snyder needs help. The last time any major hull work was done was in 1969. Kate York, of mariettatimes.com, reported that the total cost of needed work is about $1.4 million — major work on the hull, a new electrical system, work on the paddlewheel and decks. Of that, the Ohio Historical Society has applied for a $450,000 Save America’s Treasures grant from the National Park Service. Even if the grant comes through, they will have to turn to the community. At present, visitors can see many interesting things on the Snyder, but if they look closely, they can see holes in the hull, corrosion and peeling paint and a paddlewheel that needs to be replaced, wrote York. The Snyder was launched in 1918 and last moved with her own power in 1955. She is one of the nation’s remaining steam-powered, sternwheel towboats in existence. The 151.7-foot long towboat was built by Carnegie Steel Co., Pittsburgh, and was used primarily to move coal from mines along the upper Monongahela to Carnegie steel mills in Clairton, Pa. Missouri River Update As the scarcity of water continues in the Missouri River basin, various states are working to meet problems in different ways. Here is another quick rundown on their plans and activities. Montana — Gov. Brian Schweitzer of Glasgow has served notice that he intends to hold the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ and the state of Missouri’s feet to the fire when it comes to Missouri River water management. During a meeting on the 2005 operating plan, it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that the entire basin was going to share in the hit. “We know we have a deal under the Master Manual that when we hit 31 million acre-feet, navigation is precluded. It’s supposed to stop. But when we hit that, Missouri is going to scream bloody murder. They’re going to go to Congress and try to get them to change that level”, he said. North Dakota — Water conservation continues to be the message from North Dakotans. In the meantime, the Corps is talking about mitigating the effects of the continuing drought along the Missouri River basin system. In the meantime, state Game and Fish Department officials are anticipating a drop in the sales of fishing licenses, and resort owners expect fewer boats and dollars because of Lake Sakakawea’s lower water level, caused by years of drought. Of the $2.4 million the Corps plans to spend on drought-related river projects along the Missouri, $900,000 will be spent in North Dakota. Missouri — The “Kansas City Start” reports, “Record low levels in the upper Missouri River system are drifting the [Corps} into uncharted waters. Power plants and drinking water producers should have adequate supplies despite cutbacks in flows, a Corps spokesman said last Wednesday. At an April 13 meeting in Kansas City, it became apparent that people are becoming resigned to the fact that nothing will get better until the rains return. Corps spokesmen said that if it continues to rain in Eastern South Dakota and downstream, it will be possible to hold back more water upstream, thus easing the pressures there. Nebraska — The “Omaha World-Herald” reported on April 15, “America’s largest reservoir system is ailing so badly from years of drought that the [Corps} is telling people who live along the Missouri River that they should expect historic troubles in the next few years. Corps hydrologists told about 30 people at an April 14 meeting in Omaha that “It’s not a rosy picture”, that the snow pack in the Rockies is at about 69 percent of normal, and that there is “no relief in sight.” South Dakota — Efforts here are aimed at extending 10 boat ramps on Oahe reservoir. That will be among the priorities in meeting the ongoing drought. Meanwhile, A Cheyenne Indian Reservation water intake that serves 14,000 people is threatened and could become useless by August if the drought continues. If the intake were moved to deeper water, silt would become a problem. It is estimated that the Cheyenne River will be silted in by 2011. The river cannot be dredged because it will sir up arsenic and heavy metals that came downstream from the Black Hills. Yet another problem has arisen. Low Missouri waters are drying up the source for gathering fish eggs. Conservation personnel are catching fish to collect and fertilize their eggs. One walleye provides millions of eggs that can be fertilized by “milt” from a male fish. Once they are mixed, workers have only a short time to preserve the eggs. American Rivers Lists Endangered Rivers (Its Top Ten) American Rivers, an environmental advocacy group, has issued its “American Rivers 2005 Report.” In the order of their endangered condition (we assume), the rivers are:
Crossing The Bar
“The Waterways Journal” reports that: Clifford Kehr, 94, of Auburn, Neb., a 35-year employee with the Corps of Engineers on the Missouri River, died March 4. He had retired in 1965 as chief inspector. John William Gorman, 78, surveyor and owner of John W. Gorman, Inc., at Richfield, Minn., died April 3. He was a longtime member and officer of the Upper Mississippi Waterway Association. One of Mr. Gorman’s ads once appeared on the www.littleriverbooks.com web site. Our Readers Write
I appreciate your comments and outlook on the "God situation" in today's world. There are a lot of us who feel as you do, but the media seems to be promoting the other way of life, and tries to make us feel guilty about our beliefs. Anyway, thanks for doing your column. I am a 67-year-old marine surveyor in the Pittsburgh area. Ed Gibson Three Rivers Marine Surveys Excellent article concerning the Scouts! Ron Richardson You won't lose me as a subscriber, as a matter of fact, I respect you even more for speaking up. I believe Satan gets a lot accomplished through the ACLU. Melanie A. Reynolds I’m getting a lot of replies from people on the President; it’ll keep me busy for a while. I’ve acquired plans for the vessel, too, and may be building a replica model of it in the future. This will take some time. Also, the vessel is in bad shape; it’s been vandalized — windows broken, etc. Also, before being shutdown from service, the port pitman arm was removed and destroyed. Jack Ano (Editor’s note: Ano worked on the President from 1992 to 2001.) Enjoy your newsletter. I am an inexperienced boater who just recently retired. My wife and I would love to take a river trip from Cincinnati to Nashville this Fall, figure to get some experience this summer. How and where can I find out how to do it, maps, etc. Thanks for any help. I heard Quimby's is a good source but I was waiting for 2005 book to come out. Tom Quinlan (Editor’s note: Quimby’s is a good start. We are expecting to receive a supply of Quimby's momentarily. If you wish to reserve a copy, you can order now and they will be shipped immediately upon arrival along with any other books you might order at the same time. The price is the same as last year, $35 plus S&H. You might contact the Ohio River Division of the Corps about river charts. Maybe some of our readers have some tips for you.)  Boat Photo Center
Photos in this week’s Boat Photo Center include the Ann Marie, Charles B & Ann Marie, the Charles B, the J. W. Hershey and Lorie Eckstein, three of the Mv. Lime Rock, and the James Brennan from Jim Klosterboer, and two of the Mv. Hazel from Hugh Davis. In addition, we have two pictures of the W. P. Snyder Jr., one each from Dan Owen and Jeff Yates. Book Beat
  Just a reminder that we still have on hand a limited number of VHS tapes from Kathy Flippo on the Elizabeth Ann on the Upper Mississippi. The tape sells for $15 plus S&H but includes a fr^e copy of “Grab a Bush”, a $6.50 value, and a fr^e DVD of the 1999 Tall Stacks event in Cincinnati (At The Water’s Edge) which sells on our sight for $5.
Read a detailed description of Kathy Flippo's "Between Locks 14 & 2 on the UMR Aboard The M/v Elizabeth Ann." Next week we will bring you a review of a brand new book we are shipping in from France called "North America Inland Waterways Map and Index." Some of you have already ordered directly from the publishers there, but we can save you some time. The book focuses on U.S. inland waterways and contains a very good, large colored, fold-out map of the inland waterways. Watch for it. Some may already have seen the review in “The Waterways Journal.” We will have them available in about 10 days or so. The price will be $28.00 plus the usual $5 S&H. As usual, you can order via MasterCard or Visa by calling Jack at 314/921-4419 at any reasonable time of day. We should have a full review of the book on our site within a few days. Tow Talkin'
April 18, 2005 By Kathy Flippo Watched Ingram’s Mv. Roy E Claverie make the Clinton railroad draw bridge the other night with 12 loads southbound. We have high water, three feet below flood stage, but that didn’t faze the pilot at all. He floated down the rip rap and got her all lined up and went through pretty as a picture. Not only was he lined up perfectly to go through the bridge; he was also lined up perfectly to continue down the channel. Many pilots can get through the bridge OK but then have to flank themselves around so they are aimed down the main channel instead of Beaver Slough. The Claverie was built by Jeffboat in 1981, coming out originally as the George R Baker. for M/G Transport. She’s been the Roy E Claverie since Ingram bought her in 1994. She’s 145 feet by 48 feet and has a pair of GMs, Kort nozzles, and 6,140 horsepower. The best way I can describe how the channel goes though the bridge is an elbow. It’s not that it is such a narrow opening, 177.5 feet, but the opening is at the point of the elbow. The pier that supports the turntable is protected by a sheer boom made…to continue reading this column, click here. See you on the Web, Jack Little River Books jacksimpson@littleriverbooks.com Don't forget to visit our website!  |
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