Boaters Run Aground On Western Drought - Seattle PI

[hatrack]

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"The drought that geologists say could be the worst in 500 years is grounding boaters, creating hazards for water enthusiasts across the West and costing the boating industry and states millions to revamp ramps and move marinas to entice visitors. Roosevelt Lake, about 110 miles northeast of Phoenix, is 30 percent full and only three of the lake's nine ramps are operating, said Quentin Johnson, recreation specialist for the Tonto Basin Ranger District, which manages the lake. The drought also is hurting business at Roosevelt Marina. Only 30 percent of the slips are full, said Shane Cooper, who works at the dock.

At Lake Mead, on the Arizona-Nevada line, about 200 miles of shoreline have disappeared, leaving a white bathtub ring on the surrounding rocks, signs of where the lake used to be. The lake, which was created by the construction of Hoover Dam, has dropped 80 feet to its lowest level since the 1960s, said Roxanne Dey, spokeswoman for Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

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Things that were once hidden below the water also are resurfacing at Lake Powell on the Arizona-Utah line. At more than 186 miles long, Lake Powell is the country's second-largest manmade lake and one of two main reservoirs on the Colorado River. For some boaters visiting Lake Powell, its new views are welcome. Visitors are discovering canyons and red rock formations that were once submerged, and docking at beaches that didn't exist before, said Karen Scates, deputy director of the Arizona Office of Tourism.

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In Nebraska, Lake McConaughy is 25 percent full - a near-record low, said Nik Johanson, assistant superintendent of Lake McConaughy State Recreation Area. Brick and concrete foundations of old farmsteads are poking out of the water and park officials find new trees protruding from the state's largest reservoir daily. South Dakota has taken a financial hit trying to maintain one of the Missouri River's main reservoirs. Lake Oahe used to extend from near Pierre up about 50 miles into North Dakota. It now stops near the state line. Two marinas on Lake Oahe that used to have 140 slips for people to tie up their boats now have 40, said Bob Schneider of South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks. Out of 32 boat ramps, only 13 remain open."

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[markus]

1. Just heard from a fellow sailor in South Dakota

He is having to pull his boat two months early before the last boat ramp goes dry.

This is (also) a Missouri river basin water management problem. It appears that, to placate this swing state, our own GOP governoer has been told to cave on the Missouri navigation dispute (bascially closing down his own states very large recreational boating industry on Lake Sacacawea to help out the Missouri barge industry).

And this just sucks.

[hatrack]

2. It particularly sucks since the MO barge industry no longer exists

Slight exaggeration, but not much. This year there have been only three or four tows sent upstream, and the main company doing business on the Missouri has essentially given up.

It's about time, too - the Missouri has always been marginal for navigation, and it's even more so now. Last year's totals for the entire Missouri River system didn't even break $5 million, and shipping totals have been declining for almost thirty years now.

But since Kit Bond just can't do enough for his donors in the barge industry, this farce goes on and on.

[markus]

3. Thanks for the info

Do you have any links for more data? I would love to get out a LTTE smalling our GOPer governor for capitulating on this, when the economic impact of Sacacawea recreation I know is over $5 million.

[hatrack]

4. Let me hunt around and see what I can find nt

.

[hatrack]

5. Got it - archived Post-Dispatch article!

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"The impact of eliminating the barges remains uncertain. Barge traffic on the Missouri has declined steadily over the last 12 years - with barge operators and others blaming uncertain water levels.

Most of the 8.3 million tons of cargo shipped on the Missouri in 2002 involved moving dredged sand and gravel less than 10 miles. The rest -1 million tons - comprised long-haul shipments of several products: grain for export, fertilizer to farmers and asphalt for road projects in Kansas City.

By comparison, 317 million tons of products were shipped on the Mississippi River that year.

Despite the comparatively small business on the Missouri, grain farmers need the barges, said Steve Taylor, program manager of the Missouri Corn Growers Association. In some places, there is no easy access to rail cars, he said. And even where rail is an alternative, it’s typically five times more expensive than barge. Trucks are about 10 times more costly."

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http://www.marc2000.org/Documents/2bargecompaniesdropanchor.pdf

[GAspnes]

6. you da man!

Hatrack, you never cease to amaze me.

[NNadir]

7. He is da man.

I've learned a great deal from Hatrack.

Hats off (and on the rack) for Hatrack.