November 12, 2021: Missouri Independent With $6.5 billion on the way from the federal infrastructure bill and a newly increased gas tax, Missouri is ready to take a big bite out of $4.5 billion in unfunded highway needs, Patrick McKenna, director of the Missouri Department of Transportation, said this week. Instead, McKenna said in an interview with The Independent that the extra funding will be directed to as many of the more than 400 unfunded projects as possible. The choice, McKenna said, “is one project or hundreds of projects with critical safety needs from all over the state.” To make sure that is what Missourians…
Read MoreThis afternoon the Crescent Pilots increased their maximum draft recommendation to 47 feet freshwater effectively immediately after it was reduced to 46 feet freshwater on May 5, 2021. The notice was shared earlier today by the Crescent River Port Pilots’ as implanted by their Safe Navigation Committee of Louisiana for the state-commissioned river port pilots: “Based on the current conditions, the maximum recommended freshwater draft is 47′ effective immediately. Thanks.” The Phase 1 areas of the Ship Channel have all been deepened to 50 feet through the use of the four dredges listed below. The USACE utilized three contracts…
Read MoreProclamation 10205 of May 7, 2021 In 2020, the United States experienced a record year for extreme weather, with an unprecedented 30 named storms in the Atlantic Basin alone. Twelve of these storms, six of which were hurricanes, made landfall in the United States. These storms and hurricanes unleashed their devastating power on the individuals and communities in their paths. Their frequency and impact also highlight the existential threat posed to our Nation by climate change. During National Hurricane Preparedness Week, we encourage all Americans living in potentially affected areas to take precautions to ensure that they, their families, and…
Read MoreThe U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) continues working on the historic project to deepen the Mississippi River Ship Channel (MRSC) to 50 feet. The USACE has now completed approximately eighty percent (80 %) of Phase 1 of the deepening project. The Phase 1 section of the Ship Channel extends from Venice at Mile 13 Above Head of Passes (AHP) to Mile 22 Below Head of Passes (BHP). The completion of Phase 1 of the Ship Channel Deepening is expected to open up the first 150-175 miles of the Ship Channel to vessels with deeper drafts. The last status…
Read MoreFebruary 9, 2021: Maryville Forum The Mississippi River is more than just a river. The waterway connects North Missouri and the Midwest to the rest of America and the rest of the world. It’s estimated that roughly 60 percent of all grain that American farmers export is shipped down the Mississippi River. It isn’t just a one-way street though; we also depend on the river to get fertilizer to the field. Nor is it just important for those of us that farm for a living, we all rely on the oil, gas, and coal shipments that regularly travel by barge.…
Read MoreInland Rivers, Ports & Terminals, Inc. (IRPT) has a mobile app that will allow us to push vital information regarding each of the basins to industry users. The ability to communicate quickly to all users of water transportation so they can make key decisions about operations in situations where scheduled or unscheduled maintenance activities and emergencies occur on our rivers is vital. We plan to work closely with the U.S. Coast Guard, each of the USACE Districts, Regional Waterway Associations and Boat Captains to collect vital information to send navigation notices, scheduled and unscheduled Corps of Engineer’s maintenance operations on…
Read MoreOctober 30, 2018: The Advocate (full link below) Formosa’s $9.4 billion chemical complex gets key land use backing CONVENT — The $9.4 billion Formosa chemical complex proposed on the west bank of St. James Parish cleared a key hurdle Tuesday night as the parish Planning Commission backed the Taiwanese project promising hundreds of millions in tax revenue and thousands of jobs. Announced in April by Gov. John Bel Edwards, the huge facility is proposed for 2,400 acres of cane field and swamp on land already earmarked for industry. The proposal has received the backing of Parish President Timmy Roussel and schools…
Read MoreOctober 12, 2018: Ship Technology (full link below) Funding released for Cairo river port terminal in Illinois, US A sum of $1m in capital funding has been released for the planned river port terminal in Cairo, Illinois, US. Illinois State Senator Dale Fowler (R-Harrisburg) said that the funding demonstrates the state’s effort to revive the area and bring jobs to the region. Fowler said: “Southern Illinois has such potential that has gone unrecognised and underutilised for too long. “This port is a path forward for recovery, capitalising on Cairo’s location and creating the potential for future economic growth.” The proposed…
Read MoreInland Rivers, Ports and Terminals, Inc.(IRPT) invites you to a Lower Mississippi River Basin meeting. The basin meeting is being held in conjunction with the Mississippi Water Resources Association Annual Conference. Why: Provide platform for networking and discussion on river related issues affecting our region. Monday, October 22, 2018 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm Central Golden Nugget Biloxi Hotel & Casino 151 Beach Blvd. Biloxi, MS 39530 IRPT is a trade association for the nation’s inland waterway, port, and terminal professionals. Our mission is to provide a platform for inland river port and terminal professionals to improve their businesses and…
Read MoreInland Rivers, Ports & Terminals and U.S. Army Corps, Institute of Water Resources sign Memorandum of Common Purpose Cindy Cutrera, Port of Morgan City and President of Inland Rivers, Ports & Terminals and Dr. Joe Manous, Jr., Director for the Institute of Water Resources (IWR) of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers signed the Memorandum in New Orleans, Louisiana on September 12th. Through the IWR, the Navigation and Civil Works Decision Support Center (NDC), exercises its Federal responsibility for establishing and maintaining a variety of water transportation automatic information systems that include databases and statistics pertaining to waterborne commodity and…
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