NCGA
Refutes NRC Report on Corps’ Lock Modernization Plan (10-20-04)
The National
Corn Growers Association (NCGA) today challenged recent assertions
by the National Research Council (NRC) that the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers’ navigation study is “flawed” and
does not justify construction of new locks on the upper Mississippi
and Illinois rivers.
NCGA leaders said the
latest NRC report is a last-ditch effort by opponents of lock modernization
to derail legislation pending in Congress and a recommendation from
the Corps’ Chief of Engineers to build seven new locks on
the two rivers.
“This is plainly
another attempt by NRC to throw 12 years of Corps research out the
window,” said NCGA President Leon Corzine. “Not only
is the NRC overlooking a wealth of credible economic data that projects
an increase in barge traffic, but it is also failing to recognize
the environmental and safety benefits provided by our waterways.”
An NRC report released
in early October contends that the economic models used by the Corps
to predict future demand for barge transportation are unsound and
unrealistic. NRC also incorrectly asserts that the Corps did not
thoroughly investigate non-structural options to alleviate congestion.
“The NRC is making
the same hollow arguments that it’s made throughout the entire
navigation study process,” said Rodney Moe, chair of NCGA’s
Production and Stewardship Action Team. “These arguments have
been thoroughly discussed, discredited and dismissed time and time
again. Farmers, environmentalists, industrialists, consumers and
all stakeholders who benefit from river transportation have voiced
overwhelming support of the Corps recommendation to upgrade these
deteriorating locks. Congress is listening. Why isn’t the
NRC listening?”
NRC, a division of the
National Academy of Sciences, has repeatedly claimed that barge
movements will remain static because of unchanging export demand.
“The (NRC) committee said there are no overwhelming regional
or global trends that clearly portend a departure from relatively
steady levels of U.S. grain exports over the last 20 years,”
NRC concluded. “Absent major changes in international income
levels, consumer preferences, or grain production, all of which
can affect demand for American grain, the committee said future
U.S. grain exports are likely to remain flat, at least in the near
term.”
However, the U.S. Department
of Agriculture recently projected corn exports to grow 44 percent
over the next decade, with one-third of the increase exported through
ports served by the Mississippi River. Additionally, Sparks Companies
Inc. looked at five possible trade scenarios for future farm product
barge movements on upper Mississippi River. In four of the five
scenarios, barge traffic is projected to increase.
Exports aside, NCGA CEO
Rick Tolman said the NRC is also overlooking the value of the river
system for interstate shipment of grain, ethanol and other commodities.
“This isn’t
simply a matter of maintaining reliable routes to export markets.
We’re expecting a huge corn crop this year and domestic usage
is growing quickly,” he said. “With concerns about rail
and truck capacity, barge transportation is becoming increasingly
important for transporting corn, ethanol and coproducts to and from
domestic processing facilities. More ethanol is moving domestically
on the rivers than ever before, and that trend will surely continue
in the future.”
Nearly 70 percent of
this year’s corn crop will be consumed by domestic livestock
and ethanol markets in 2005, Tolman noted, making it necessary to
have reliability in all modes of interstate transportation.
“Many important
domestic markets are accessible by river and we need a dependable
locks system to reach those markets in a timely manner,” he
said. “And in many cases, these markets are located in corn-deficit
states.”
Corzine said corn growers
– and all stakeholders who benefit from river transportation
– should continue to contact their lawmakers and discuss the
crucial need for new locks on the Mississippi and Illinois rivers.
“Though this NRC report is not likely to gain much traction,
corn growers should again contact their legislators to let them
know we support the construction of new locks and the expeditious
authorization of the Water Resources Development Act,” he
said.