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Author: Oropan |
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Date Posted: 13:28:48 04/16/07 Mon In reply to: Oropan 's message, "Let's look at the numbers...." on 13:24:49 04/16/07 Mon http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/_plugins/Programs/HistoricGreatLakesLevels/pages.cfm?page=table&LakeID=1&YearID=19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,40,41,42,43,44,45,46,47,48,49,50,51,52,53,54,55,56,57,58,59,60,61,62,63,64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,73,74,75,76,77,78,79,80,81,82,83,84,85,86,87,88,89,90,91,92,93,94,95,96,97,98,99,100,101,102,103,104,105,106,107&MonthID=1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12&Max=0&Min=0&Mean=1&CFID=5812714&CFTOKEN=60825872 >I always like cold hard facts....no fake polar bear >pictures from me! > >href="http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/_plugins/Programs/H >istoricGreatLakesLevels/pages.cfm?page=table&LakeID=1&Y >earID=19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,3 >5,36,37,38,39,40,41,42,43,44,45,46,47,48,49,50,51,52,53 >,54,55,56,57,58,59,60,61,62,63,64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71, >72,73,74,75,76,77,78,79,80,81,82,83,84,85,86,87,88,89,9 >0,91,92,93,94,95,96,97,98,99,100,101,102,103,104,105,10 >6,107&MonthID=1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12&Max=0&Min=0&Me >an=1&CFID=5812714&CFTOKEN=60825872">http://www.lre.usac >e.army.mil/_plugins/Programs/HistoricGreatLakesLevels/p >ages.cfm?page=table&LakeID=1&YearID=19,20,21,22,23,24,2 >5,26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,40,41,42,43 >,44,45,46,47,48,49,50,51,52,53,54,55,56,57,58,59,60,61, >62,63,64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,73,74,75,76,77,78,79,8 >0,81,82,83,84,85,86,87,88,89,90,91,92,93,94,95,96,97,98 >,99,100,101,102,103,104,105,106,107&MonthID=1,2,3,4,5,6 >,7,8,9,10,11,12&Max=0&Min=0&Mean=1&CFID=5812714&CFTOKEN >=60825872 > >Note that the overall Great Lakes level was lower in >December 1925 than it is/was in Dec 2006 and also >lower than the long term average. And I see no zero >nada info in the numbers to point to anything that >shows the Lakes are dropping. And yes, the Great lakes >are an interconnected series of lakes. Accually, I >find it quite surprising that the levels are not >dropping with the steadly larger amounts of water that >are deverted from emptying into them along with the >increasing amounts that are drawn from them. > > > > > >>Just recently he posted how cold it was there in >>mockery of global warming. And you know, if it hasn't >>happened to Oro, it hasn't happened. >> >>> "lake huron rolls, superior sings, in the rooms of >>>her ice water mansion" (gordon lighfoot, wreck of >>>the edmond fitzgerald) >>> >>> Lake superior's status as an "ice water mansion" >>>is in danger, as ice coverage has been well below >>>normal for years, and increased evaporation are >taking >>>a toll. Even with winter's dramatic comback in much >>>of the eastern and central part of the united states >>>in february and now in april, the greatest of >american >>>lakes is approaching all time record low levels. All >>>the other great lakes are fed by superior, and >>>superior is about a third of the total area of the >>>great lakes, this may be a disaster for the entire >>>great lakes region in coming decades. >>> >>> >>>Lower water means lighter loads, headaches on Great >>>Lakes >>>Sunday April 15, 2007 >>>By EMILY FREDRIX >>>AP Business Writer >>>MILWAUKEE (AP) When Fred Shusterich looks around the >>>harbor on Lake Superior, he sees things he hasn't >seen >>>in years little islands poking out of the water. >>> >>>Shusterich is concerned, like many others connected >to >>>the shipping industry, about what those islands >>>signify off the city of Superior in far northern >>>Wisconsin. >>> >>>``I think it may be another very poor year if this >>>drought continues as far as water levels,'' he said. >>> >>>Now's the time when harbors along the Great Lakes >>>Superior, Michigan, Huron, Ontario and Erie thaw and >>>shipping begins, carrying 10 percent of the country's >>>waterborne cargo. >>> >>>But excitement over the shipping season is being >>>replaced with frustration over low water levels, >which >>>is forcing shippers to lighten their loads so they >can >>>move safely into harbors. >>> >>>The lighter loads sometimes hundreds of tons per ship >>>turn into headaches for suppliers that send their >>>goods on vessels, shippers and companies whose orders >>>come up short. >>> >>>Midwest Energy Resources, the coal supplier where >>>Shusterich is president, just sent out its first >>>vessel of the season with a load just under 60,000 >>>tons, shy of a typical 62,000-ton shipment, he said. >>> >>>Shippers don't expect the situation to improve soon. >A >>>warmer-than-normal winter this year means more >>>evaporation because the lakes aren't protected by ice >>>cover. They also worry about dredging the process by >>>which sand, silt and other debris are removed from >>>harbors. Dredging doesn't solve the problem of low >>>water levels. But it does give ships wiggle room to >>>carry more weight. >>> >>>Unfortunately, the federal government, which pays for >>>most of the harbor dredging, can't keep up with >>>demand, said Glen Nekvasil, vice president of >>>corporate communications for the Lake Carriers' >>>Association, a trade group for shippers on the Great >>>Lakes. >>> >>>For every inch the lakes recede, ships must reduce >>>their loads between 50 and 270 tons, he said. At the >>>end of last season, with waters particularly low on >>>Lake Superior, ships lost about 8,000 tons per trip >>>about 11 percent of their carrying capacity, he said. >>> >>>``Every ton has an impact. These companies, they earn >>>their living carrying cargo, so every lost ton of >>>cargo is lost revenue,'' Nekvasil said. >>> >>>Shipping is big business. Last year, a little more >>>than 1 billion tons of goods such as iron ore, coal >>>and limestone, were waterborne in the U.S., he said. >>>Shippers on the Great Lakes hauled 110 million tons >of >>>cargo, with more than half of that iron ore. >>> >>>Back in the late 1990s, shippers hauled as much as >125 >>>million tons of cargo a year on the Great Lakes. Last >>>year's numbers are at least partially due to the low >>>water levels, but the steel industry which uses iron >>>ore has been slow, too, Nekvasil said. The coal trade >>>has been steady and the roughly 70 ships in the U.S. >>>fleet regularly sail, he said. >>> >>>Water levels have slipped for years and the forecast >>>isn't getting any better. Lakes Erie and Ontario are >>>faring better than the others this year, said Scott >>>Thieme, chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' >>>hydraulics and hydrology office in Detroit. But >>>numbers show they're still lower than last year. >>> >>>Lake Superior is within a few inches of its record >low >>>599.5 feet deep, set in 1926. It's now about a foot >>>lower than last year and projections for this summer >>>are that it'll get even lower. >>> >>>It's unclear how long the other areas will maintain >>>levels above record lows, because all the lakes are >>>connected, Thieme said. >>> >>>``The lakes are so large that there's such a huge >>>volume of water. It takes a long time for some of >>>these impacts to move through the system with them >all >>>being linked,'' he said. >>> >>>One way to combat it is to dredge so vessels can get >>>in. This year the Corps of Engineers will spend $20 >>>million on dredging projects in the Great Lakes >>>region, up from $19 million last year. But that >>>increase is due to projects on Chicago commercial >>>ports, which are not dredged as often, said Angie >>>Mundell, project manager for operations for the corps >>>in Detroit. >>> >>>Nekvasil's group argues the government should >spending >>>more. >>> >>>``This is a major issue for the industry. It's our >>>primary focus right now,'' he said. >>> >>>Grain exporter Chicago and Illinois River Marketing >>>isn't waiting for the government to dredge its harbor >>>in Milwaukee. Richard Blaylock, manager at the >>>company's site, said the company spent $200,000 in >two >>>years to dredge its own spot off the Milwaukee >Harbor. >>> >>>With shipping season just under way, he's not sure if >>>the company will have to dredge for a third year in a >>>row. >>> >>>``Dredging is expensive and I'd like not to have to >do >>>it,'' Blaylock said. >>> >>>Iron ore mining company Cleveland Cliffs will simply >>>hire more ships to carry its ore to customers like >>>steel plants throughout the region, said Dana Byrne, >>>vice president of public affairs for the >>>Cleveland-based company. >>> >>>The dwindling water levels mean a typical vessel >>>carrying between 25,000 and 30,000 tons will have to >>>reduce its load by 1,000 tons per trip, he said. >>> >>>``We're going to move the tons we need to move and >>>we'll just have to do it,'' Byrne said. ``It's just >>>going to take more trips and added cost.'' >>> >>>Shusterich's company, Midwest Energy Resources, plans >>>to contract to have 450 ships again this year. He >said >>>it'll continue to serve customers, like electric >>>utilities and industrial companies, by rail and truck >>>when it can. >>> >>>``When we're running at the levels we're running, it >>>means you need more vessels to carry the same amount >>>of cargo,'' he said. ``But at some point you run out >>>of vessels.'' >>> >>> >>> >>> >>>On the Net: >>> >>>U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Great Lakes: >>rel=nofollow target=_blank >>>href="http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/greatlakes">http: >/ >>/ >>>www.lre.usace.army.mil/greatlakes >>> >>>Lake Carriers' Association: >target=_blank rel=nofollow >>target=_blank rel=nofollow >>>target=_blank >>>href="http://www.lcaships.com">http://www.lcaships.co >m >>< >>>/a> >>> >>>(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights >>>Reserved.) [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] |
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| Link from US Army corp of engineers will not link but | Oropan | 13:35:32 04/16/07 Mon |
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