Ontario Premier
Kathleen Wynne and Michigan Governor Rick Snyder unveiled a plan that would
cost $3.8 billion to modernize the St. Lawrence Seaway system.
It would involve
doubling locks at Sault Ste. Marie, dredging and harmonizing U.S. and Canadian
regulations and administrations.
Sonia Simard,
director of policy and government affairs for the Shipping Federation of Canada
said harmonization is
essential to improving the efficiency and competitiveness of the seaway-Great
Lakes.
The current
system creates a patchwork of regulatory demands and “results in increased
administrative and operational costs,” she said.
The departments
and agencies of both countries should harmonize their processes and share data
with respect to certification and inspection, she said.
One example of
such streamlining could be the application of a single clearance process by the
Canadian and U.S. authorities of marine shipments transiting the region,” Simard
said.
Glen Nekvasil,
vice-president of the U.S. Lake Carriers Association, applauded calls in the
plan to create a second lock between lakes Superior and Huron and to dredge the
St. Marys River between lakes Huron and Ontario as well as other infrastructure
improvements to keep shipping on the lakes safe and efficient.
Dredging the St.
Marys River to its authorized depth of eight metres creates political
controversy over declining water levels. The river is considered a “critical
choke point” in the waterway.
Shipping in the Great
Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway supports 227,000 jobs and creates more than $33
billion US in business revenue, says a report commissioned by the Chamber of
Maritime Commerce.
The federal governments, not the states and provinces, would be responsible for implementing and funding almost the entire package of proposals.
