Thanks to Debbie for forwarding this news.
Press Release from the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
July 1, 2003
Contact: Mark Muller, IATP, 612-870-3420, [log in to unmask]
Ben Lilliston, IATP, 301-270-4787, [log in to unmask]
New Study Finds Decline in Agriculture Traffic on Missouri River
Increased Efficiency of Railroads Cited As Cause
(Minneapolis) - Today, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP)
released a report documenting the stark decline in commercial barge traffic
(CBT) on the Missouri River. The authors, C. Phillip Baumel of Iowa State
University and Jerry Van Der Kamp of AGRI-Industries, studied trends over
the last four decades to conclude that projected Missouri River
agriculture-related barge traffic was grossly over-estimated and is now in
sharp decline.
"If the purpose of federal navigation investment is to get farmers a better
price for commodities and to support rural communities, Missouri River
navigation has been a complete failure," says Mark Muller, director of IATP
s Environment and Agriculture program. "Today, federal expenditures on the
navigation system are more about providing a subsidy to the barge industry
than helping farmers."
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) projected that in the late 1970 s
CBT would reach 5,000 barge tons and remain there through the end of the
this century. The CBT never reached 5,000 barge tons and in 2000 stood at
1,300. This represents a decline of 61% from the peak of 3.3 million barge
tons reached in 1977 still 1.7 million tons below the Corps projections,
according to the report. Corps projections were used to justify the original
project and the Corps continues to use projections to justify future
projects, like the Mississippi River Navigation Project.
The study finds multiple causes for the profound decrease in commercial
barge traffic on the Missouri River. The increasing efficiency and
cost-effectiveness of railroads is cited as a major contributing factor.
Farmers are also hauling their grain in their own semis. This increased
mobility allows farmers to bypass high-cost barge terminals and deliver
their crops to a multitude of nearby end users and markets.
"Local corn and soybean processing markets, local feed markets and rail
traffic to the west coast and western and southwest feeder markets, in high
efficient, low cost shuttle trains, are out competing Missouri River barges
for transporting grain from the western corn belt," said report co-author
Phil Baumel. "Farmers, that the Corps assumed would use the Missouri River
to transport grains, are finding higher net prices elsewhere."
Lower traffic on the Missouri River makes it less cost-effective for
taxpayers. Revenue from the user tax also known as the barge fuel tax are
placed in trust fund and used for waterway construction. Using the Corps own
figures, the tax generates about 48 cents per ton of freight or about 1.3
cents per bushel of corn. Meanwhile, the public pays about $5.42 per ton of
freight or about 15.2 cents per bushel of corn to operate and maintain the
nine-foot channel.
The Missouri River navigation system has been hotly debated recently. In
2002, the National Academy of Sciences released an alarming report on the
Missouri River ecosystem, stating that environmental degradation is clear
and continuing. The dams and channel constructed for navigation were found
to contribute significantly to that degradation. Six Missouri River basin
states have also recently requested that the Corps test more natural river
flows, much to the dismay of the navigation industry.
The study calls for re-evaluation of the federal financing of agricultural
transportation, particularly in light of the evolving world grain markets
and rapid changes in the transportation industry. A recent Pentagon
investigation of the Army Corps of Engineers disclosed intentional study
manipulation to justify large projects and an institutional bias.
The study and executive summary can be viewed at:
http://www.iatp.org/enviroag/
The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy promotes resilient family
farms, rural communities and ecosystems around the world through research
and education, science and technology, and advocacy.
Mark Muller
Director, Environment and Agriculture Program
Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
2105 First Avenue South
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55404
phone: (612) 870-3420
fax: (612) 870-4846
email: [log in to unmask]
http://www.iatp.org
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