Lake and River Port Facilities 6.6.1

CHAPTER 6 6.6 LAKE AND RIVER PORT FACILITIES 6.6.1. INTRODUCTION Water ports, by nature, are inter‐modal. People and freight traveling by water must arrive and depart by another transportation mode. Inter‐modal connectors are roads that provide access to water ports or rail services. Truck and other vehicular congestion on or near the inter‐modal connections affect ports that rely on trucks for commodity transfer. Improvements to roadways that connect to ports increase the efficiency of ports, benefit trade, and contribute to employment growth and regional productivity. With statistics such as fourth, ⅓, 58.8 million and 5.7 billion – as in: • Fourth in the nation for total water tonnage moved • The Ohio River System accounting for ⅓ of all annual U.S. inland waterborne commerce by tonnage • The Lake Erie System annually accommodates 58.8 million tons of commodities moving to, from and within Ohio • $5.7 billion in the annual value of Ohio port shipments on Lake Erie In 2001, more than 58,800,000 tons of commodities moved to, from, and within Ohio on the Great Lakes; this was a 7% decline from 63.3 million tons from 1995. The annual value of Ohio port shipments on Lake Erie equals $5,700,000,000. Coal accounts for 22,000,000 tons (39%) of the state’s total traffic‐iron ore, and represents 13,200,000 tons (22%) of the State’s total Great Lake tonnage. There are no water ports located in either Mahoning or Trumbull Counties. However, the two Ports of Ashtabula and Conneaut are located on Lake Erie north of the Eastgate planning area in northern Ashtabula County. In addition there are a total of 17 commercial docking facilities on the Ohio River in Columbiana County in either East Liverpool or Wellsville Ohio, which are both south of the Eastgate planning area. Recently the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) began an Office of Maritime and Freight Mobility, located in the department’s new Office of Multi‐Modal Planning. This was established as a result of recommendations from the Ohio 21st Century Transportation Priorities Task Force. The task force concluded that if ODOT was to be a truly multimodal agency it needed a maritime presence that was on par with all other transportation modes. ODOT began this new office in February 2009. Few of the nation’s DOTs have a maritime office, but then again few states have the benefit of having one of the Great Lakes forming its northern border, and the nation’s ninth longest river forming its eastern and southern borders. Ohio is bounded on the north by Lake Erie (265 miles of coastline), and on the south by the Ohio River (a 451 mile length), for a total length of 716 miles of navigable water. Ohio’s strategic location provides its businesses and industries with an inexpensive and effective means for goods movement; opportunities for passenger travel on ferries, cruises, and recreation; and commercial and recreational opportunities for fishing. Water transport also provides a needed global gateway for military mobility and national security. Regions with water port access such as Toledo, Cleveland, and southern Ohio counties along the Ohio River and its tributaries, benefit land‐locked regions of Ohio by offering water transportation services. Ohio’s 209 port terminals provide a competitive advantage to the State by their ability to provide access to foreign trade and a low‐cost means for shipping bulky items, such as coal, to and from distant regions. Shippers moving commodities by barge realize a savings of more than $600 million compared to other transportation modes. According to the Ohio portion of the most‐recent ‘Report Card for America’s Infrastructure,’ produced by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), Ohio’s ports handled 124 million tons of waterborne traffic in 2005, ranking it sixth in the nation. The ASCE report estimates that more than $73 billion in cargo value is shipped annually via the nation’s inland and intracoastal waterways, which serve 38 states. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) statistics show that 4 of the nation’s busiest 15 inland ports in 2007 were located either in Ohio or directly across the Ohio River from the state. These ports included: #1 Huntington‐Tristate, W.Va. (Chesapeake); #10 Cincinnati; #11 Cleveland; and #12 Toledo. The report said that Ohio’s over 200 port terminals provide a competitive advantage to the state by its ability to provide access to foreign trade and a low‐cost means for shipping bulky items, such as coal, to and from distant regions. Shippers moving commodities by barge realize a savings of more than $600 million compared to other transportation modes. Exhibit 6.6.1. – Cargo Capacity Comparison According to the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), while just 13% of internal domestic trade is transported by water, 95% of U.S. foreign trade is transported by the marine or water transportation system. USDOT projects that the demand for water transport will double by 2030. Water transportation reduces highway congestion and deterioration. The Exhibit 6.6.1 to the left gives some idea of the efficiency of bulk water transport. One fully loaded barge carries the equivalent of 58 trucks. One tow unit, typically composed of 15 barges, carries the equivalent of 58 rail cars or 870 trucks. A fuel use comparison suggests that a river barge can travel as far on one tablespoon of fuel as a train on a cup or a truck on a gallon. 6.6.2. OHIO GREAT LAKES/LAKE ERIE SYSTEM The Great Lakes/ St. Lawrence Seaway system covers more than 94,000 square miles with more than 10,000 miles of coastline. All the lakes have navigable channels of 27’ to 30’. Currently the size of the locks limits the size vessel that can travel among the lakes on this system. Lake Erie is the twelfth largest freshwater lake in the world and part of the St. Lawrence Seaway navigation system. Great Lakes trade is dominated by the steel industry, which relies on lake vessels to move iron ore. According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, in 2001 there were 147 commercial vessels operating on the Great Lakes. 57 of these were U.S. registered and 90 were Canadian registered. Most of the Canadian vessels were 700’ to 730’ in length, and 32 of the U.S. registered vessels were between 700’ and 1,099’. The larger vessels typically were self‐loaders, transporting iron ore.). There were 77 manufacturing facilities, terminals, and docks on Ohio’s 265 miles of lakefront that shipped and received freight tonnage in 2001. 6.6.3. OHIO RIVER SYSTEM Ohio’s southern and eastern border includes 451 miles along the Ohio River. The Ohio River system accounts for approximately 1/3 of all U.S. inland waterborne commerce by tonnage per year and, as a system, moves more cargo than the Panama Canal. The system is utilized at only 30% of its capacity. Ohio River system trade, in Ohio, is dominated by the electric utility industry which relies on waterways to ship coal to 19 water‐served power plants. The majority of shipments are energy or fuel‐related. These commodities are most efficiently shipped in open containers and are not conducive to containerization. The newly designated Port of Huntington‐Tristate, WV, OH, KY moves 76,700,000 tons annually and is the seventh largest water port in the United States by shipping weight. This port includes 100 miles along the Ohio River, 90 miles along the Kanawha River and 9 miles on the Big Sandy River. 6.6.4. PORT OWNERSHIP AND REGULATORY AND ADMINISTRATIVE AUTHORITY Water based transportation is made up out of 3 components: waterways, ports, and the intermodal connections on land that link the ports to their users. Waterways consist of channels and locks, which based on their width and depth, dictate the type of vessels and commodities that can be shipped on or through them. Ports may include anchorages, piers, transfer facilities, warehouse and shipyards. Land based inter‐modal connections are the linkages used by cargo and passengers between modes. They include road and rail access routes. The roadway connections are the only part of Ohio’s water transportation system for which ODOT is responsible. In Ohio there are five types of port ownership: local governments, public port authorities which do not own facilities, public port authorities which own facilities, private operators of public use terminals, and private operators of private use terminals. Neither the State of Ohio nor ODOT own, regulate, or maintain water port facilities or port authorities. Three port authorities in Ohio which own facilities are Toledo, Columbiana County and Cleveland. Thirty port authorities have been established by local governments under Chapter 4582 of the Ohio Revised Code. These authorities are managed by boards of directors appointed by local government officials. A port authority so created possesses the same rights, privileges, and powers that are granted to municipal corporations under sections Chapters 721.04 to 721.11 of the Revised Code. This includes the power to own, sell, lease, or trade property; issue bonds; operate foreign trade zones; make loans; guarantee obligations; exercise the right of eminent domain; and make and enter into contracts. A port authority also has the right to award contracts without competitive bidding; engage in research; receive and accept state or federal grants and loans for construction; and straighten, deepen, and improve water ways necessary to operate or develop a port facility. Because these authorities have the ability to generate income, they provide an untapped economic development opportunity for the State.

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