Nationwide, the Corps received $1.72 billion from the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2012, which was signed by President Obama Dec. 23. Of that, $55 million of an overall $534 million dedication for operation and maintenance of inland waterway systems nationwide was directed to the Lower Mississippi River to restore the channel from Baton Rouge to the Head of Passes at the mouth of the River.
“This is tremendous news not only for the Port of New Orleans and the local maritime community, but for the growers, producers and manufacturers in the 32 states that depend on the Lower Mississippi River to get their goods to global markets,” said Gary LaGrange, the Port’s President and CEO.
The Louisiana delegation in both the House and Senate worked tirelessly in a bi-partisan fashion to secure the additional funds, which brings the Corps’ budget for operation and maintenance on the Lower Mississippi River to more than $126 million this year, including the Corps’ original $72.6 million budget for the waterway. Over the last decade, the average cost to maintain the Lower Mississippi River is about $104 million.
“The entire Louisiana delegation is to be commended for their efforts to secure the money necessary to fully restore the Lower Mississippi River’s channel to its full dimensions,” LaGrange said. “The River serves more than two-thirds of the nation’s consumers and moves about 450 million tons of international cargo worth about $114 billion annually.”
That cargo consists of two-thirds of the U.S. grain exports and is vital to other commodities, such as export coal, petroleum products, and U.S. refining capacity – along with cargo activity at the Port of New Orleans.
U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu and U.S. Rep. Rodney Alexander – both members of their respective chambers’ Appropriations Committee, were instrumental in securing the additional funding. However, all members of the delegation, including: Sen. David Vitter, Rep. Cedric Richmond, Rep. Steve Scalise, Rep. Charles Boustany, Rep. Bill Cassidy, Rep. John Flemming and Rep. Jeff Landry were supportive of the efforts.