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Drought Affects Seaway Shipping

Story Published: Aug 1, 2012 at 7:10 PM EDT

Story Updated: Aug 1, 2012 at 7:10 PM EDT

There isn't much grain moving through the St. Lawrence Seaway system these days and that could be a sign of things to come.

That's because severe drought in the Midwest has hit farmers hard, resulting in Seaway grain shipments being down for the third straight month.

"The period of recovery could be over," said the Seaway's Sal Pisani.

"Now, you basically have to brace for the best that you can come up with and hopefully the bottom line isn't as bad as they think it could be."
 
But, Seaway officials say, there has been a modest increase in ship traffic and cargo passing through the Massena locks this summer.

Bolstered by wind turbine shipments like the ones to the Port of Ogdensburg, overall cargo shipments are up slightly over this same period last year.

"There's a lot of discussion going on with all the ports for handling wind turbines," Pisani said. "This is the wave of the future."
 
Seaway officials are also keeping a close eye on low water levels on the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario, which can increase the risk of a ship grounding.

"They're low, okay, and adjustments have been made," Pisani said.
                                                                        
Seaway officials say low water levels haven't reached the critical stage.

When water levels get too low, they say, ships can't carry as much cargo and that ends up costing the shipping industry millions of dollars in lost profits.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
, Watertown, NY

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