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Press Release

After one of the busiest summers in its 34-year history, the Michigan Maritime Museum has announced new hours and staffing adjustments for the coming winter season.

As of October 1 the museum will be open to the public from 10 AM – 5 PM Friday, Saturday and Sunday and by appointment.  The Maryalyce Canonie Great Lakes Research Library located at the Keepers House will be open Thursdays from 10 AM – 5 PM and by appointment.

All of the facilities on the museum campus will be open including the main gallery, the VanOort Coast Guard boat house, the US Lifesaving Service crew quarters, the fish tug Evelyn S. and the Padnos boat building shed.  Dockside tours of the tall ship Friends Good Will will be available until the weather prohibits boarding. Read the rest of this entry »

Source: Sault Star

Engineers are monitoring the Poe Lock after a gate malfunction closed the largest of the Soo Locks on Wednesday.

“It wasn’t mitring properly so we stopped traffic for a while [Wednesday morning],” said Klein.

“We’re still monitoring it,” he said.

Read the full story at the Sault Star >>

Source: WLUC TV 6

Marinette Marine shipbuilders say they’re facing layoffs.

Boilermakers Local 696 says it’s been notified that 91 union employees will be laid off effective Monday.

A union official says a second round of layoffs involving another 120 workers is scheduled for November 3, unless the company gets additional work.

Earlier in September, Marinette Marine’s CEO said the layoffs were necessary because of delays by the Navy and Coast Guard in awarding contracts.

But just Wednesday, it was announced that Marinette Marine would get more than one billion dollars to build two combat ships at their Marinette facility.

CATHY DOBSON | Source: Sarnia Observer

[The] underwater videography is now complete and its suggests the riverbed near the bridge hasn’t changed, says John Nevin, communications advisor for the International Upper Great Lakes Study.

That flies in the face of assertions made by Georgian Bay homeowners, who claimed in 2005 that ongoing erosion in the riverbed is causing low lake levels. According to the bathtub theory the riverbed is eroding as a result of past dredging, making the channel deeper. With a larger drain-hole at Sarnia, lakes Michigan and Huron are falling.

… Instead, the study has found that the St. Clair’s riverbed south of the Black River appears to have “significantly” changed in size.

“It might be a result of maintenance dredging or perhaps it’s prop wash from propellers. It’s really too early to say,” said Nevin.

Read the full story at the Sarnia Observer >>

Source: Thunder Bay’s Source

A weak shipping season for the Port of Thunder Bay could become even worse next month.

Workers with the St. Lawrence Seaway have voted to give the Canadian Auto Workers union that represents them a strike mandate, with a potential walkout coming as early as Oct. 10.

Local port authority CEO Tim Heney said Thunder Bay could be among the hardest hit centres if the strike goes ahead.

“Thunder Bay is the largest export port on the seaway,” he said. “That means most of our cargo goes all the way through the Welland Canal - [a labour disruption] would certainly have a dramatic impact on us if it lasted any length of time.”

Read the full story at Thunder Bay’s Source >>

Source: Chronicle of an older diver

Slightly over a month later we were in Sarnia, Ontario on a hot (34C), diving a couple of wrecks under the Blue Water Bridge. One wreck, the “Monarch”, lies in the middle of the St. Clair River at a depth of 60 feet. My log book notes a “moderate” 6 knot current. I have memories of hanging on for dear life, especially when the freighters went overhead.

Read the full entry at deepstop.wordpress.com >>

Source: Coast Guard News

The U.S. Coast Guard announced today that the interim rule for dry cargo residue discharges on the Great Lakes is scheduled for publication in the Federal Register Monday, Sept. 29, 2008.

The interim rule requires Great Lakes bulk dry cargo carriers to keep records of loading, unloading and discharges of dry cargo residues and encourages lake carriers to use control measures to reduce the amount of dry cargo residue entering the waters of the Great Lakes. The rule continues to allow the discharge of non-toxic and non-hazardous bulk dry cargo residues in certain areas of the Great Lakes. Discharges are now prohibited in certain protected and sensitive areas where previously, they were allowed.

Great Lakes ships have operated under a Coast Guard “interim enforcement policy” since 1993, that has allowed “incidental discharges” of non-toxic and non-hazardous dry cargo residues such as limestone, iron ore and coal on the Great Lakes. The interim enforcement policy also specified where dry cargo residue discharges could and could not occur. Congressional legislation has extended the interim enforcement policy since 1998. The current extension, granted by Congress in 2004, expires Sept. 30, 2008.

The Coast Guard also requests public comments on the need for and feasibility of additional conditions that might be imposed on future dry cargo residue discharges, such as mandatory use of control measures or further adjustments to areas where discharges are prohibited or allowed. Comments can be submitted online at …  Read the rest of this entry »

Bart Stupak’s Office | Source: SooToday.com

The U.S. House of Representatives today passed a spending bill to fund the U.S. Departments of Defense, Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs for the entirety of fiscal year 2009, which begins on October 1.

The bill also funds all other federal government agencies at current levels through March 6, 2009.

Defence spending

The bill includes $1.02 billion for two Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) and instructs the U.S. Navy to award contracts for construction of the ships as soon as possible.

Marinette Marine in Marinette, Wis., built the first LCS ship and is a candidate for building additional ships.

The bill also includes … $6.24 million for Marinette Marine Corporation to continue research on ship hull forms, demonstrating the Bow Lifting Body concept at a creditable and useful size to help transition the technology to military and homeland security applications

Auto industry

The bill includes $7.5 billion to support $25 billion in direct loans for automakers to re-tool their plants to produce the next generation of advanced technology vehicles.

The loans were approved by Congress in the Energy Security and Independence Act, which was passed in December 2007.

This is the first time Congress has provided funding for the program.

“This money is an investment in the auto industry and in hard working Americans who make our cars and trucks,” Stupak said. “As opposed to the bailout the president has requested for Wall Street, these loans will be paid back and will result in a profit for taxpayers. Democrats and Republicans in the Michigan delegation have worked in a bipartisan manner with House and Senate Leadership to put together this critical build out package for the automakers.”

Bettina Chavanne | Source: Aviation Week

I got an excellent opportunity this morning to take a ride on the Potomac aboard the Coast Guard’s new Response Boat-Medium (RB-M).

The RB-M acquisition is the third initiative in the Response Boats 2010 strategic vision and transition plan, aimed at standardizing and revitalizing the USCG’s shore-based response fleet.

There are 30 RB-Ms on order. Marinette Marine is delivering approximately one per month, while building production capacity to deliver 30 per year as early as FY 2010.

Full story, more terrific photos at Aviation Week (blog) >>

Source: Duluth News Tribune

Commercial shipping between Lake Superior and the lower Great Lakes was on hold for a few hours today after a malfunction of the Poe Lock in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.

The 1,200-foot-long lock’s gate malfunctioned at 9 a.m., and crews were called in to investigate with an underwater camera. Three ships were delayed while the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers worked to determine the cause of the malfunction.

Repairs were made by early afternoon, allowing normal vessel traffic to resume.

by Elizabeth Dunbar | Source: Forbes

ST. PAUL - The state pollution control agency approved strict standards for ships that discharge ballast water into Lake Superior, hoping they will cut down on the spread of harmful invasive species.

Unlike federal proposals pending in Congress, the new permit process will cover both oceangoing vessels and ships that stay within the Great Lakes.

…. by 2016, ships will be required to treat their ballast water before dumping it into Minnesota waters.

Details of interim and longer-range management, enforcement at Forbes >>

Source: The Triton

The licensing rates for graduates of U.S. maritime academies continue to fall, according to data released by the Maritime Administration (MARAD) this summer and reported in the most recent edition of MarEx Newsletter.

Overall, the licensing rate for state academies has fallen to 59 percent. Only at Kings Point and Great Lakes Maritime [GLMA] are 100 percent of grads opting to pursue an officer’s license. Texas A&M University at Galveston registered the next highest licensing rate.

MarEx called the mariner licensing data evidence of “a worrisome trend at the nation’s six maritime academies.” Nationwide, the percentage of last year’s graduates who chose to pursue a license was about 61 percent. MarEx reported that ever more graduates are choosing shore-side careers in areas such as stationary power plant operations and industrial safety.

The International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots cite a worsening of working conditions as a major factor in the drop in the number of professionals who choose to pursue careers at sea. According to maritime expert Michael Grey, highly trained professional mariners will continue to be in short supply until governments and industry make significant improvements in the conditions under which they live and work.

Grey cites, in particular: the limits of questionable legality that some terminals and governments are placing on shore leave; the problem of “under-manning” and the toll it takes on safety and health; and the risk of being criminalized for accidents that take place at sea.

Reported in a recent edition of Wheelhouse Weekly, a newsletter of the International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots.

James Rowen | Source: The Political Environment

The Great Lakes Compact won overwhelming approval in the US House of Representatives today, and moves to the White House for the president’s promised signature.

On balance, this is an important advancement for Great Lakes preservation, and hats off to the many activists and public officials who spent years getting this document created and approved.

Several issues remain.

The first is the need for …

Read the full article at the Political Environment >>

Source: The Triton

The US Coast Guard proposes to amend certain regulations relating to the training and service requirements for merchant marine officers, according to a recent issue of Maritime Reporter.

These changes would, if adopted, remove the expiration date of the radar-observer endorsement from the merchant mariner’s license, allow for an apprentice mate of towing vessels to reduce sea-service time form mate (pilot) of towing vessels by completing additional approved training, and provide an alternate path to mate (pilot) of towing vessels for master of steam or motor vessels of any tonnage that is 200 GRT or less.

Comments should be submitted by Oct. 14.

Source: Seafarer’s Blog

The latest Lloyd’s Register guide to Ballast Water Treatment Technology is now available. This follows the success of last year’s guide, the first of its kind. This updated version provides further independent and impartial descriptions and appraisals of commercially available and developing technologies for ballast water treatment.

… The latest guide gives more information on estimates of CAPEX (capital expenditure) and OPEX (operating expenses) related to the ballast water treatment systems and it outlines the significant moves by manufacturers towards obtaining system approval, active substance approval as required and Type Approval certification.

Full article and links at the Seafarer’s Blog >>

by Tom Meersman | Source: Star Tribune

Weary of waiting for federal action, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is scheduled to vote on a precedent-setting rule today that will prohibit ships from dumping untreated ballast water into Duluth-Superior harbor and other state waters.

State officials say they have to act because Duluth receives far more ballast water than any other Great Lakes port, making it more at risk from invasive species.

The state’s proposal would require all large ships to begin treating their ballast water before dumping it, beginning in 2016. Possible treatment includes filtering through extremely fine screens or sand; using chemicals such as chlorine or ozone; or applying methods such as ultraviolet radiation or heat.

New ships would have to have the treatment technology working by 2012.

Ship owners and trade associations agree that invasive species are a problem, but object to Minnesota’s plan.

Read the full story at the Star Tribune >>

Source: Trading Markets

A strike by St. Lawrence Seaway employees would result in a loss of east coast shipping capacity at a time when western Canadian producers can least afford it, according to an industry source.

“It’s a prime time for western Canadian producers to market their grain and oilseed crops and to sell those commodities onto the world market at a good value,” Rick Steinke, Director of logistics, for the Canadian Wheat Board, said.

Grain and oilseeds from western Canada are generally railed to port facilities at Thunder Bay, Ontario. From there the grain and oilseeds are generally transferred from Thunder Bay terminals to east coast transfer elevators located at the mouth of the St. Lawrence Seaway system by laker vessels. Some smaller ocean going vessels can also load at Thunder Bay terminals.

“Our understanding is that if the strike by the St. Lawrence workers goes ahead, it will be very difficult to move grain through the St. Lawrence Seaway without the seaway management corporation employees,” Steinke said. “We need them to operate the locks and allow for the flow of products.”

Read the full story at Trading Markets >>

Source: Small Business Times

The Freedom, the nation’s first littoral combat ship, built in Marinette by Lockheed Martin with assistance from Marinette Marine, a subsidiary of The Manitowoc Company Inc., was delivered late last week to the U.S. Navy.

… The ship completed its sea trials in Lake Michigan last month.

The Freedom will be commissioned in Milwaukee on Nov. 8 and will eventually be taken to its home port in San Diego, Calif.

Read the full story at the Small Business Times >>

Corina Milic | Source: Sault Star

“Business wise, (the Sault) is the hub of the Great Lakes, so for commercial stuff it’s a pretty decent place to be,” said Jackson, who started up R. Jackson Development Inc. last year.

“Full commercial [diving] means anything in the water that needs to be repaired, inspected or taken out so that it can be repaired and inspected on the surface,” said Jackson.

Underwater welding and sewage clean up are part of the job, but most of the work comes down to concrete reconstruction - especially along the built up St. Mary’s River waterway, canal and locks system.

… He and his two-man team completed their first contract last year in Sturgeon Falls, cleaning up and reinforcing the “piernose” of a dam for West Nipissing Power and Allard Marine Industries.

Jackson does have some competition. There are at least three other commercial divers in the area, including Purvis Marine, Porpealia Repair and Gardiner Marine on St. Joseph Island, where Jackson plans to have a permanent office.

More on commercial & recreational diving at the Sault Star >>

Source: ReliablePlant.com

New mine development in Canada and the U.S. has risen rapidly in the last few years as worldwide demand for coal, iron ore, copper, molybdenum, potash and uranium has led to a record number of mine projects under development, currently peaking at more than 220 coal, metals and minerals mines in various stages of planning, engineering and/or construction. These mines represent more than $113 billion in total investment value.

These new mines are highlighted on Industrial Info’s new Canada & U.S. Mining Industry Wall Map. This first-edition map features details of more than 930 operational mines and 220 mines under development in the U.S. and Canada.

Data the map includes, preview and more information at ReliablePlant.com >>