Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway sees future in Chinese, Indian containerized freight
More than half of North America's population and manufacturing and service industries are serviced by the St. Lawrence Seaway which opened 48 years ago. Heavy users during the Seaway's first half century have been bulk shipping, including grain, iron ore and salt. For the next half century, planners are preparing the Seaway to handle containerized freight coming from Asia through the Suez Canal. The Seaway is especially valued due to congestion on US West Coast ports and on rail and highway arteries; in fact, the Seaway actually has excess capacity, but requires investment to preserve its reliability (now 98% available during the regular shipping season). A new GLSLS Study by the seven US and Canadian Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway custodial agencies examines the economic, environmental and engineering challenges facing the system and calls for "a proactive maintenance strategy" focused on system reliability. Water freight is seen as a major contributor to reducing transportation greenhouse gas emissions.
