Dry Weather Leads To Low Water
Dry weather is causing low-water problems on both the Mississippi and Ohio river systems.
Donnie Williams, co-chairman of the Lower Mississippi River Commission (LOMRC), urged caution as the channel continues to narrow.
Williams said September 9 that, while on a call with industry stakeholders, the Corps of Engineers and the Coast Guard, he learned there did not appear to be any significant chance of rain for the Ohio River Valley, which feeds much of the basin, for the next two weeks.
So far, he said, there had not been any groundings in the channel, although he urged pilots to be especially careful while transiting problem areas.
LOMRC, working with the Coast Guard, instituted an 11-foot draft for southbound tows from Cairo, Ill., at the confluence with the Ohio River, to Lake Providence (Mile 483) and set a width restriction of no more than six barges wide beginning September 8.
From Lake Providence south, there is no draft restriction, but barge width is limited to no more than seven wide.
Northbound tows between Mile 303 at Old River and Cairo are limited to a draft of 10 feet, 6 inches and a barge width restriction of no more than six wide, with no more than five wide on loaded barges.
Beginning September 15, those drafts and width restrictions will tighten further, Williams said.
Southbound drafts will be limited to 10 feet, 6 inches from Cairo to Lake Providence and a width of no more than six barges, he said. From Mile 483 to Mile 303, the draft will be set at 11 feet and no more than six barges wide.
Also beginning September 15, northbound tows from Mile 303 to Cairo are to have a 10-foot draft, with barges to be configured no more than six wide or four wide maximum on loads.
All traffic is urged to have a no-wake speed when transiting close to fleeting areas during this period of low water.
Williams said there is an immediate need for dredging, but no immediate response.
“I’m very concerned because we’re not getting any dredges out here,” he said. “That’s my problem. Industry is doing everything it can to be proactive in this low water, but we have been struggling with the Corps of Engineers for funding reasons. They will not release a dredge out of deep draft to come to shallow draft.”
At Nelms, Mile 711, the channel was becoming very restricted and was redefined by buoys set by the Coast Guard buoy tender Kankakee. The dredge Jadwin was scheduled to depart New Orleans on September 12 and to arrive at Nelms around September 18, Williams said. River closures during this dredging are expected, and the Lower Mississippi River Committee (LOMRC) will be looking at establishing a queue management system.
Williams added that LOMRC also requested the dredge Potter from the Upper Mississippi River, and that it could arrive in the area around Hickman, Ky. (Mile 920 to 922), September 18 or 19 as well.
“That’s going to be one of our first trouble spots as Cairo gets down to 8 feet on the gauge,” he said.
The gauge at Cairo, Ill., was at 11.4 feet and falling on September 11, after a slight bump from storms in the Upper Ohio Valley had caused a slight rise to around 12 feet. With no precipitation to sustain the rise the gauge was predicted to fall below 10 feet by the end of the coming week, and into critical stages the following week.
The stage at Memphis was -5.1 and was predicted to fall to -6.2 in the next 14 days. The river stage at Vicksburg was at 9.5 and some southbound tows began having trouble negotiating the turn at Togo, mile 414. A few of these tows were literally topped around while flanking this turn due to a cross current in the vicinity of the lower weir dike. LOMRC was advising extreme caution in transiting this area. Vicksburg was expected to fall to a stage of 8.5 feet within the next two weeks.
On the Ohio River, the low-flow conditions, coupled with warm temperatures, are causing “algae blooms” that result in taste and odor issues with municipal water supplies. The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (ORSANCO) has reported that while the taste and odor issues are a nuisance, the water is otherwise harmless. Some area utilities were increasing the chemical feed for activated carbon and flushing hydrants in order to improve water quality.
The main chamber at the Captain Anthony Meldahl Locks and Dam was expected to remain closed for upper bulkhead slot installation through September 12. All traffic was having to pass through the 600-foot auxiliary chamber and, as of the morning of September 11, there were 13 tows in queue with delays averaging slightly over 16 hours. Tows were being locked in a three up, three down sequence, and the industry self-help program was in place to provide pull boats.
The Luhr Brothers dredge Bill Holman had completed several dredging projects on the lower Ohio River and was working in the America Bar area below Olmsted Locks and Dam.
On the Upper Mississippi River, in the area between St. Louis and Cairo traditionally known as the “middle” Mississippi, there were several trouble spots. The river stage at St. Louis was at 5.1 feet and was predicted to reach 2 feet within the next two weeks. The dredge Potter had been dredging near the mouth of the Illinois River at mile 218.5 and was enroute to mile 171.7 below St. Louis. The dredge Geotz has been working in and near the mouth of the Kaskaskia River, mile 110 on the Upper. This will continue while the Corps has Costello Lock, just inside the mouth of the Kaskaskia, closed for repair work. The lock is scheduled to reopen on or about September 20.
At Mile 94 on the Upper Miss, at an area known as Backbone, the channel was closed for more than 24 hours due to salvage operations. A southbound tow had been flanking here on the afternoon of September 8 when the starboard lead barge contacted the right descending bank, causing it to break out of tow. The loaded barge wound up perpendicular to the bank and extending out into the navigation channel. Attempts to pull the barge free were unsuccessful, and it subsequently had to be lightered to facilitate removal.
By Shelley Byrne and Capt. David Smith
