Iron ore for steel production is the primary cargo moved by U.S.-flag lakers. In 2012, the fleet moved more than 45 million tons of taconite pellets. Limestone for the construction industry and steelmaking approached 22 million tons. Coal for power generation totaled more than 17 million tons. Other cargos included cement, salt, sand, and grain and, collectively, totaled 5 million tons.

Those totals were impacted by the dredging crisis on the Great Lakes. At the end of 2012, the largest vessels were leaving more than 10,000 tons of cargo behind because of inadequate dredging and falling water levels. If the full length of the Federal navigation channel in the Cuyahoga River was dredged to its project depth, 23 feet, the Pathfinder would have been able to carry 3,200 more tons. The vessel is scheduled to shuttle ore within Cleveland Harbor for four weeks, so it will forfeit about 77,000 tons.

There is no reason the Great Lakes Navigation System cannot be maintained to project depth. The cargos that move on the Lakes (and East, Gulf, and West Coasts) are taxed and the receipts are deposited in the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF). Nationwide the tax generates about $1.6 billion per year, but the HMTF typically only spends about $750 million. The surplus, about $7 billion, is used to mask the size of the Federal deficit. As a result, more than 18 million cubic yards of sediment now clog Great Lakes ports and waterways.

Legislation that would require the HMTF to spend what it takes in for dredging on dredging has been introduced in both the House and Senate. H.R. 335 was introduced on Jan. 22 and already has 94 co-sponsors, 17 from Great Lakes districts. S. 218 was introduced on Feb. 4 and has 31 co-sponsors, including 12 of the 16 Great Lakes Senators. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers estimates it would cost about $200 million to restore the Great Lakes Navigation System, just a fraction of the surplus amassed in the HMTF.

The next vessels to enter service will be two cement carriers on March 7. The iron ore trade out of Escanaba, Mich., is expected to resume on March 14.