Congress enacts Water Resources Development Act

Congress enacts Water Resources Development Act

Approval of appropriations required for authorized dredging, construction projects

Reacting swiftly to the President's veto of the Water Resources Development Act, both houses of Congress in November voted overwhelmingly to override the veto and enact the legislation containing provisions crucial for Great Lakes shipping.

The House of Representatives voted 361-54 in favor of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), followed by the Senate's vote of 79-14 to enact the legislation. A two-thirds majority in each house is required to override a veto.

The WRDA authorizes approximately $23 billion worth of studies and construction projects by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This is the first legislation of its type to be enacted since 2000, leaving many critical water resources projects to languish at the expense of U.S. citizens, commerce and the environment.

The WRDA directs the Army Corps of Engineers to expedite dredging operations to return harbors and navigational channels on the Great Lakes to project depths and dimensions. The WRDA also authorizes the construction of a second large lock at Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., at federal expense. Currently, only the Poe lock is capable of accommodating ships larger than about 750 feet and its failure would cripple shipping trades between Lake Superior and the other Great Lakes.

American Maritime Officers National Executive Vice President Dan Smith credited Congressman James Oberstar (D-MN), chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, for his dedicated efforts and leadership role in getting the WRDA enacted with authorization to build the new large Soo lock.

"Congressman Oberstar has tirelessly championed the lock over the years," Smith said. "He never despaired, but just kept on fighting for this vital infrastructure improvement."

Smith, who serves as the second vice president of the Great Lakes Maritime Task Force, also remarked on the urgent need for dredging operations to return navigational features to project dimensions.

"Our ships are being forced to leave a lot of cargo at the docks," Smith said. "The lack of dredging has dramatically drawn down the efficiency of the entire shipping system on the lakes.

"Now that these projects have been authorized, the legislative battle to secure appropriations to fund them remains," Smith said.

The WRDA was initially passed as a conference report with strong bicameral majority support. That support held for the bipartisan rally to override the President's veto.

"We stood together--Democrats and Republicans, House and Senate--to fight for our local communities that need long-overdue federal assistance," Rep. Oberstar said.

Senate Republican Whip Trent Lott (R-MS) characterized the undertakings authorized in the WRDA as "good, deserved, justified projects."

The projects authorized in the WRDA will cost an estimated $11.2 billion in the next four years and $12 billion over the following 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

With authorization of the projects completed through enactment of the WRDA, the next step is securing funding for the projects, which must be appropriated by Congress.

Construction of a Poe-sized Soo lock could take 10 years to complete and cost an estimated $341 million, according to the Great Lakes Maritime Task Force.

The Great Lakes fleet of 1,000-foot self-unloading bulk carriers depend on the Poe lock at Sault Ste. Marie to transit between Lake Superior and the four other Great Lakes. A failure of that lock, which is nearly 40 years old, would severely disrupt iron ore and coal trades, which supply U.S. steel mills and power plants.

In July of this year, The House of Representatives voted to approve $2 million for the Army Corps to design a second large Soo Lock. Additionally, the House appropriated $126.9 million for the Army Corps to begin addressing the backlog of Great Lakes dredging needs.

"Decades of inadequate funding for dredging have forced vessels to leave millions of tons of cargo behind each year," said James Weakley, president of the Lake Carriers' Association. "Restoring the Great Lakes navigation system to project dimensions will finally allow Great Lakes shipping to achieve the efficiencies for which it was designed. We thank Senator Carl Levin for his efforts to include this landmark provision in the Water Resources Development Act."

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