Federal funding cuts are dredging up problems for Holland, Mich. utilities and consumers
February 26, 08 by TheFleetIf you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
By Dr. ERIC HEITMAN | Source: Holland Sentinel
Proposed cuts in federal funding for Great Lakes dredging in 2009 could impact energy consumers and continue to drive up costs for businesses that use Holland harbor.
Low water levels combined with less dredging by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, prevent incoming freighters from carrying full cargo loads and shorten the shipping season, resulting in higher costs, said Bob Vande Vusse, Holland mayor pro-tem and shipping columnist for The Holland Sentinel.
“Given federal funding levels, the corps has not been able to keep up with its mandate,” he said.
Congress and the administration approved nearly $140 million for Great Lakes dredging in 2008. The administration’s proposed budget for 2009 requests $89.3 million, a decrease of about $49 million, or about 35.5 percent, according to data compiled by the Great Lakes Maritime Taskforce.
The Holland Board of Public Works burns coal to generate electricity, with the coal comes in by freighter.
“One of the reasons we have one of the historically low rates for electricity in Holland is because we’re able to bring our fuel in by ship,” explained Vande Vusse.
“The cost of fuel is by far and away the largest cost in generating electricity. Because we can bring it in by ship, we can keep our costs low.”
But the shallow harbor prevents freighters from carrying full loads, driving up the cost.
“So, if we cannot bring coal here as efficiently, that means the cost to generate the electricity goes up, and as a result, the cost that people pay for their electricity has to go up,” he said.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced earlier this month that it will dredge Holland harbor in the spring.
Brewer’s City Dock Inc. is feeling the effects of low water levels as well, said company President Phil Brewer.
“Everything has gotten narrower and shallower,” he said.
“Over the last four years, the harbor has closed early because it forms a shoal before the end of the shipping season. At the end of the season, we need to stock up our inventories to last through the winter. We run out of material.
“We were supposed to get a boatload of salt in, but the boat couldn’t get in. We’ve had to go as far away as West Virginia for salt, at a hugely greater expense,” Brewer said, warning that higher costs are passed on to consumers.
