Warrior-Tom Meeting Stresses Infrastructure

Association leaders said the system has faced consecutive infrastructure problems since last year’s meeting. After Demopolis Lock reopened following the failure of the upper miter gate sill, Holt Lock became the next major concern after a crack was found in monolith 14. The Corps made temporary repairs to reopen navigation while permanent repairs moved ahead. The repair schedule has allowed commercial traffic to move during portions of the work, including weekend lockages.

Vern Gwin, chief of operations for the Mobile District, said the district’s inland navigation team has been responding to multiple maintenance and repair issues across the system. The Black Warrior-Tombigbee project received nearly $25 million for fiscal year 2026, with a modest increase projected for fiscal year 2027. The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway is projected to receive about $34 million in fiscal year 2027.

Gwin also discussed updated tonnage reporting. The Corps is using more current Lock Performance Monitoring System data rather than figures that lag by several years. Through April, traffic on the system was running ahead of recent years, following a 2024 decline tied to the Demopolis outage. Coal remains the largest commodity moving on the waterway.

Anthony Perkins, operations project manager for the Black Warrior-Tombigbee, said dredging remains a priority. The lower BWT has regular funding for pipeline dredging, with Inland Dredging Company expected to return to the system later this year. Perkins said the Corps also has funding for small boat access channels used by survey and response crews. He asked operators to continue reporting shoaling or problem areas so the Corps can inspect and adjust its dredging priorities.

The Holt Lock repair remains the largest active project on the system. Perkins said the lock is operating on a five-day construction, two-day navigation schedule, with weekend lockages continuing until a planned closure beginning July 13. The repair includes installation of more than 150 anchor rods, each 2-1/2 inches in diameter, to stabilize the cracked monolith.

The first Holt closure is scheduled for 60 days. After a three-week reopening, a second 25-day closure is scheduled to begin October 2. Perkins said a short extension of the five-two schedule may follow to complete lift-off testing and confirm that the anchors are carrying the designed load.

Perkins said Demopolis Lock lower miter gates are being fabricated by G&G Steel in Florence, Ala., and Iuka, Miss., with delivery expected in summer 2027. Installation will require a 30-day closure. During that closure, the Corps also plans to repair lock floor damage believed to be tied to the 2024 sill failure, when a large concrete section fell and damaged floor tiles.

The Corps is also evaluating short closures to replace bearing assemblies on the sector gears associated with the Demopolis lower gates. At Coffeeville Lock, a separate lower miter gate contract has been awarded to Stewart Machine Company, with delivery expected in summer 2029.

Justin Murphree, project manager for the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, reported on lock and dredging work on that system. At Witten Lock, the Corps tested a shotcrete repair to address recurring erosion in culvert ceilings, a problem that has required repeated patching since the late 1990s. Upcoming closures at Glover Wilkins and Thad Cochran locks will include gate cleaning, inspection and other routine work. At Thad Cochran Lock, crews will also replace contact blocks that have deteriorated over time.

Murphree said the Tennessee-Tombigbee recently received reprogrammed dredging funds, with about $5.5 million planned for a large dredge and about $3 million for a small dredge. The work will target several critical areas, along with other locations needing maintenance.

Valerie Morrow, dredged material program manager for the Mobile District, discussed beneficial use of dredged material. The Corps has a national goal of putting 70 percent of dredged material to beneficial use. On the Tenn-Tom, material from disposal sites has been moved to support port and restoration projects, including nearly 500,000 tons used in connection with the Alabama Port Authority’s APM Terminals expansion. Morrow said the project created capacity in a Corps dredge placement area while supplying material for port construction.

Ashley Kleinstrodt, project manager for the Tennessee-Tombigbee and Black Warrior-Tombigbee Navigation Feasibility Study, said the study is reviewing channel reliability and the potential benefits of deepening portions of the system. The team is evaluating a 10.5-foot channel depth, compared with the current 9-foot depth, while accounting for lock sill restrictions, particularly at Demopolis. The $8.5 million study is roughly halfway complete after a funding pause and is targeted for completion in fiscal year 2028.

Coast Guard Sector Mobile briefed attendees on inspection trends, communication tools and hurricane-season readiness. Officials urged operators to submit inspection applications early, keep required testing and logs current, communicate before drydock or equipment changes and use the Coast Guard Navigation Center and Marine Safety Information Bulletins for navigation notices, closures and severe-weather updates. The Coast Guard also noted that new buoy tenders are in the design phase, part of a longer-term update to aids-to-navigation support.