Barge traffic slowed by low water

The water level of the Mississippi River has improved in recent weeks, but the river remains too low for normal shipping volumes. 

Draft depths for barges along most of the river are down 30 percent compared to normal levels. 

River depths in the Lower Mississippi River have improved since record lows in October, but water levels between St. Louis and Cairo have deteriorated. The river level at Memphis neared the minimum operational limit in October, but has risen 16 feet in the last six weeks.

Some barge operators have reduced the number of tows by half, and those tows include a reduced number of barges due to width restrictions on the river. Barges are often loaded at only 75% of capacity.

Recent rains in the lower watershed have raised river levels by up to 10 feet in sections of the channel, but the long term prognosis is for lower than average levels to be the norm until the drought is broken.

Cape Girardeau, Missouri sits 50 miles upriver from Cairo, Illinois, and is accustomed to dealing with wide swings in the depth of the Mississippi River.

Stacy Kinder, Mayor of Cape Girardeau "What's interesting so I guess our our for our area, the last major drought occurred in 2012. So ten years ago. So in between then and now, both of which were record setting drought disasters, we here in Cape Girardeau have seen several record setting flooding issues."

While it has experienced some economic loss from the lower river levels on a reduced basis for grains raised in the region, it has recently experienced damage to its infrastructure due to drought conditions.  In October, shifting soil broke a 14-inch water main, which placed the entire city under a boil order. 

Stacy Kinder, Mayor of Cape Girardeau, Missouri: "So record setting drought, record setting flood, record setting flood. Now, record setting drought, that that takes a toll on on every city, every industry, every business. And it's just not very well seen. It's not obvious, but there's a lot of expense there."

For Market to Market, I’m Peter Tubbs.