Work continues to make the Mississippi River as healthy and as up to date as possible from the US Army Corps of
Engineers, keeping shipping and commerce viable to help not just Hastings or Minnesota, but nationwide. Deputy Public Affairs Chief with the St. Paul District of the US Army Corps of Engineers Patrick Moes says the river still is a major transportation option through the midwest and continues to be a big advantage for Hastings.
“When you think about it, nearly 60% of America’s grains. So those farms that are making soybeans, producing corn, right in the heartland, they are going down the Mississippi River to ports near and far. They are reaching global markets. To have that crown jewel in your backyard, we truly are blessed.”
Moes said many are often blown away by how much transportation costs are saved by using the river.
“Generally what you’ll see in Hastings is more of a 9-12 barge configuration. One of the reasons is if you go up to the Spring Lake Park area, there are some bends in there that are really tight right now for navigation, so they don’t push 15 barges typically. But once you go south of Red Wing, you’ll see a lot of 15 barge configurations. So to give you a little comparison, a 15-barge tow which you’ll see on the river, it’s impressive. That’s the equivalent of more than 1,000 semis, or 200 rail cars. So when you really kind of really boil it down, 1,000 semis literally is almost 14 miles end to end. So Minneapolis to St. Paul, gridlock traffic on I-94 which we are all accustomed to. So having that river in our backyard, really from an economical perspective, is taking all of that wear and tear off the roads and it’s more energy, fuel efficient, and environmentally friendly. It really is a multiplier in many fronts.”
Moes also said there is a new initiative in the Army Corps of Engineers to allow for more local decisions called the Building Infrastructure, Not Paperwork designed to speed up projects.
“Really what it focuses on is, building infrastructure over the course of several decades, we’ve gotten to the point where it got a lot more, dare I say bureaucratic in some of our endeavours to really focus on our core mission and deliver for the American public. So this initiative is kind of a reset if you will, allowing our leadership at our local level to make risk-informed decisions that at the end of the day will streamline processes, and really help us focus on getting infrastructure. Whether it’s operations, locks and dams, dredging is a big focus of this initiative. To really focus on being able to deliver quicker, better, and more economically for the public.”
Hear the full interview with Patrick Moes on In Depth on KDWA Radio and online at KDWA.com.
To listen to the broadcast, click the soundbite.