FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE From: American Rivers * Environmental Defense Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy Illinois Stewardship Alliance * Mississippi River Basin Alliance National Audubon Society * Sierra Club January 29, 2004 Environmental Groups Oppose Lock Expansion for Mississippi and Illinois rivers, Support Congestion Relief, Restoration Environmental groups today opposed immediate authorization of longer locks on the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers and instead called on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to complete a credible economic analysis of the need for the $2.3 billion lock expansion project. American Rivers, Environmental Defense, Illinois Stewardship Alliance, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, Mississippi Basin Alliance, the National Audubon Society, and Sierra Club today supported a proposal by the Corps to immediately implement some small-scale congestion management measures at locks. And, the groups called a $5.3 billion restoration plan "a significant down payment." But the groups opposed Corps proposals to authorize lock expansion, subject to future studies and reports by the Corps. The groups urged the Corps to develop better economic tools before the agency decides whether to ask Congress to spend as much as $2.3 billion on longer locks. "Two panels from the National Academy of Sciences have concluded that the Corps is using economic tools like unrealistic traffic forecasts that produce the wrong results." said Scott Faber, Environmental Defense Water Resources Specialist. "We should not use fuzzy math to decide the future of a river as important to the nation as the Mississippi. Even the Corps' fuzzy math shows that locks are not justified under most scenarios of future traffic." River traffic has not increased in more than two decades, but the Corps today proposed a wide range of lock expansion alternatives, including immediate construction of 7 new locks and the extension of five existing locks. "There is clear scientific evidence that the river needs to be restored, but there is no evidence that the river needs longer locks," said Melissa Samet, Senior Director of Water Resources for American Rivers. "Any Corps request for Congress to authorize lock expansion without such evidence is unacceptable." The Corps also today proposed to immediately deploy helper boats at some locks to help reduce a 90-minute lockage by 20 minutes or more. But, the Corps does not plan to immediately implement other congestion management measures like scheduling or incentives for better deck crew training and equipment. "Small-scale measures can bring immediate relief to river users facing delays at a fraction of the cost of longer locks. By contrast, longer locks can't be built for more than a decade," said Mark Beorkrem, Executive Director of the Illinois Stewardship Alliance. "We should reduce delays now by immediately implementing small-scale measures and should take a few more months to fairly evaluate whether we need spend $2.3 billion on longer locks." The groups called a Corps proposal to spend $5.3 billion on habitat restoration a "significant down payment" towards restoration of a healthy river, but urged the Corps to develop a more detailed, long-term restoration plan. The Corps plans to immediately ask Congress for $1 billion to focus on restoration investments that could be made in the next ten years. "We should be restoring, not destroying, this great natural treasure," said Angela Anderson, Upper Basin Program Director for the Mississippi River Basin Alliance. "A healthy river supports thousands of jobs in riverside communities. We're encouraged that the Corps recognizes that the needs of the living river are as important as the needs of the working river." "We can't reverse all of the damage that's been done to the river over the past 150 years in ten years, but it makes sense to set some priorities," said Dan McGuiness, Director of the Upper Mississippi River Campaign of the National Audubon Society. "We can do a great deal to reverse the decline of the river in the next ten years. But, the Corps needs to quickly complete work on a detailed, long-term restoration plan so that we're better able set priorities." ************************************************* Conservation letter on navigation study: http://www.amrivers.org/docs/Letter_OMB-CEQ_Navigation_Study.pdf Facts about alternatives to longer locks: http://www.amrivers.org/docs/FactSheetLongerLocks.doc Technology we have vs. Money we don't: http://www.iatp.org/enviroag/ For further information contact: Melissa Samet, American Rivers, 415-482-8150; Dan McGuiness, Audubon, 651-290-1695; Scott Faber, ED, 202-387-3500 x3315 Mark Muller, IATP, 612-870-3420; Mark Beorkrem, ISA, 217-299-0217; Angela Anderson, MRBA, 314-776-6672 x102; Bill Redding, Sierra Club, 608-257-4994 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Make your voice heard! Find out how to get Take Action Alerts and other important Sierra Club messages by email at: http://www.sierraclub.org/email