This year key to river's future use

Staff photo Part of a tow moves through Lock 15 in the Mississippi River off Rock Island. The Corps of Engineers is studying whether to reconstruct the lock system of that long tows can move through without being separated.

Ever since the first riverboats traveled up and down the Mississippi River, commercial traffic has become synonymous with ``Mighty Mississippi.''

The river, known as a massive, interconnective waterway, faces the challenges of balancing increased commercial traffic in the form of river barges with maintaining its lifeline for the environment.

John Gardner, retiring president with the Quad City Development Group, said traffic will continue to increase in the new century.

``Yes, I do see an increase in commercial traffic,'' he said. ``I can see traffic from corn and soybeans entering the world market. It's critical in upgrading our locks and dam so that farmers in the region can compete with other world markets.''

In upgrading the lock and dam system, environmental issues must be kept in the forefront, Mr. Gardner said.

``We're hoping for a plan that all parties can live with -- commercial users, environmental issues, recreational issues, these are the three that are important to us here in the Quad Cities,'' he said. ``With the river, we have the opportunity to recruit and maintain businesses which is crucial to the area.''

As part of that balance between the environment and improving commercial traffic, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been evaluating alternative navigation improvements for the Upper Mississippi River and Illinois waterway to reduce delay to commercial navigation and facilitate more efficient navigation while having less environmental impact.

Ron Fournier, chief public affairs officer, with the Corps of Engineers, said preliminary recommendations from their study will come out next month.

``Basically, if the study warrants construction on the locks and dams and upon recommendation and authorization from Congress, there would be quite a bit of construction,'' he said. ``The construction would employ a lot of local people, boosting the economy say from 2004 to 2010, that's a three- to eight-year period of construction.''

Financial survival for farmers and other industries will be directly connected to the river's navigation system, Mr. Fournier said.

``This is how most of the farmers ship out their grain,'' he said. ``Coal comes in, goes out. Petroleum comes in, goes out. A lot of other commodities that people don't realize are transported via the river, such as mulch for people's yard. If there weres no barge traffic, farmers would find it impossible to ship their products and make a profit. Most likely they would make a minimal profit.''

Environmentalists concerns for the river are being taken seriously throughout the study process, according to Mr. Fournier.

``The lock and dam system creates backwaters for industries, power plants,'' he said. ``The use for the river in the future, hopefully will increase, as more people become dependent on the river with greater products shipped off to foreign markets.

``Some of the environmentalists claims are a little bit out of proportion. The feeling that increased traffic would be detrimental to the environment is sometimes overstated. Their concerns consist of having much more traffic on the river. The river will never become a highway. The new system will be just three or four more vessels a day.''

Bi-State Regional Commission previously gave its support behind the Corp's Alternative H. plan, which recommends five, 1200-foot locks on the Upper Mississippi River, (Locks 20 through 25), two 1200-foot locks on the Illinois River at LaGrange and Peoria, five guidewall expansions (Locks 14 through 18), and encourages the use of mooring buoys or cells on the Upper Mississippi River and Illinois waterway. The current locks and guidewalls are 600 feet.

Jeff Stein, local spokesman with environmental group American Rivers, said not just environmentalists but all people should keep a close eye on the river and its health.

``How much commercial traffic on the Mississippi River in the next century depends on decisions made in the next year,'' he said. ``The Corps of Engineers are studying the question if longer locks are needed. Production from the Midwest could increase in the next 50 years or so. Another concern that we have is lands currently in preservation programs being returned back to farmland.

``Our concern is that the environmental and ecological interests are given equal footing to economic interests. We want the study to fairly and completely measure the impact expanding locks and dams would have on the environment. Traffic along the river affects plants, fisheries, the water quality, backwaters, when a barge travels along the river it stirs up sedimentations. The river is such a vital part of our community, its important to keep it healthy.''

The Corps will complete its navigation study concerning the Mississippi River for review by Congress in December.