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Source: http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/27/us/mis...html?hpt=hp_t2
Barge companies fear Mississippi River shutdown because of water levels
By Joe Sutton and Phil Gast, CNN
updated 5:41 AM EST, Fri December 28, 2012
(CNN) -- As politicians and barge companies express fear of a shutdown or significant disruption, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is tackling one of two significant problems presented in the drought-stricken Mississippi River.
The Corps, aware that barge traffic could be disrupted as early as next week because of sharply lower water levels, can't do anything about ice forming in northern portions of the river, impeding adequate water flow.
But it is using contractors to remove rock formations in the river near Thebes, Illinois, to help maintain a 9-foot-deep channel for navigation, said St. Louis District spokesman Mike Petersen. Blasting, one of the removal measures, began December 21...
Barge companies fear Mississippi River shutdown because of water levels
By Joe Sutton and Phil Gast, CNN
updated 5:41 AM EST, Fri December 28, 2012
(CNN) -- As politicians and barge companies express fear of a shutdown or significant disruption, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is tackling one of two significant problems presented in the drought-stricken Mississippi River.
The Corps, aware that barge traffic could be disrupted as early as next week because of sharply lower water levels, can't do anything about ice forming in northern portions of the river, impeding adequate water flow.
But it is using contractors to remove rock formations in the river near Thebes, Illinois, to help maintain a 9-foot-deep channel for navigation, said St. Louis District spokesman Mike Petersen. Blasting, one of the removal measures, began December 21...