Calumet Grounding and a new Poe Lock

[Odysseus]

Back to the question...

A few years ago the PRT went sideways in the Rock Cut. It screwed things up for a bit, but shipping went forward after the matter was resolved, the area surveyed. Traffic was able to move again. Now if the Poe when down like the Mac went down last year for how long was that? That would really put a monkey wrench into shipping.

Do I personally want to spend that kind of money to build a new lock, and for how long it's going to take? No. Is it needed? Probably. But there are a lot of boats out there that can use the Mac that the Corp won't let them use because of what I consider the Corp being too cautious.

My $0.02, FWIW.

[Woodtick]

The idea of the need for a new lock is questionable, the 13 boats that use it are at east 30 years old, their has been no investment in new American ships other than the labor saving tug barge combo. If we were truly worried about the national economy why was the Escanaba ore dock closed ? This was the only ore dock not dependent on the locks to ship ore out.

[A guest]

The Poe Lock isn't the ONLY lock at the Soo. When a problem happens, the Corp of Engineers are on top of it. This ongoing "fear" that the locks are always on the brink of breaking down, ought to be taken as an insult by the Engineers. Another lock would simply be a rather expensive convenience, much like the "need" for another icebreaker. All of this would be different if the shipping industry was at capacity and growing.

[Guest]

The funny thing is you think it will cost $500 million. It is closer to $1 billion.

[Yoda]

Wisely you speak, young Jedi.

[greenshirt]

this recent grounding brings to my mind the wisdom of a new Poe sized lock; is a new lock really worth the $500mill when the entire system can be shut down for days by a relatively simple navigational error or a mechanical failure in a single vessel ?
Half a billion bucks .. where else could it be wisely spent ? Harbor dredging and maintenance ?

that's a wee bit of an ignorant statement. Harbor dredging for the ships that aren't coming when the locks break down?

[Guest]

If the brakes wear out in your car is it worth fixing them when you could get a flat tire in the future? Silly question.

[GuestAgain]

A vessel grounding, whether from navigational error or mechanical failure, will only shut down the waterway for a coupled days to a couple weeks. Supply chains can handle that amount of delay. A major malfunction of the Poe Lock would shut down the waterway for many, many months, something that is much more difficult for supply chains to handle. I don't believe coal, iron ore, etc. stockpiles are big enough to handle that amount of time.

[Ed Davis]

True, a grounding may close a channel for a day or two but a major malfunction of the only passage between the upper and lower lakes would shut down shipping for months or even years depending on the extent of the repair work. I don't like the cost either, but yes it is justified.

[Guest]

this recent grounding brings to my mind the wisdom of a new Poe sized lock; is a new lock really worth the $500mill when the entire system can be shut down for days by a relatively simple navigational error or a mechanical failure in a single vessel ?
Half a billion bucks .. where else could it be wisely spent ? Harbor dredging and maintenance ?

Yes the lock is worth every penny of that. I'm not sure why they closed the river but it looks like traffic could pass albeit slowly. Losing the Poe Lock would be like when the Douglass Houghton blocked the St. Mary's at Encampment Island in 1899 for a week. It was a huge financial hit to the industry. It lead to the building of the Rock Cut. The Calumet aground is a matter of moving a ship out of the way, if you have a major failure on the Poe Lock you're looking at waiting weeks for repairs that more than likely would include custom fabrication of replacement parts. Lock redundancy is badly needed.

[Ben]

I'd rather see the money pay down debt!

[Hobieone]

this recent grounding brings to my mind the wisdom of a new Poe sized lock; is a new lock really worth the $500mill when the entire system can be shut down for days by a relatively simple navigational error or a mechanical failure in a single vessel ?
Half a billion bucks ..... where else could it be wisely spent ? Harbor dredging and maintenance ?