U.S. Great Lakes Shipping Stands Still Due to Ice Conditions, Lack of Icebreakers
A little over a day and half since the Soo Locks opened providing access to Lake Superior and critical raw materials like iron ore, and the U.S.-flagged Great Lakes commercial fleet is at a standstill in the St. Marys River and Whitefish Bay, the critical connection between Lakes Superior and all other Great Lakes.
The only way into Lake Superior is through the St. Marys River and Whitefish Bay, but ice conditions and a lack of a heavy U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker are creating substantial delays for American shipping and manufacturing. Some U.S. shipping companies have suffered more than 24-hour delays and the clock keeps ticking.
With the Mackinaw, the only heavy domestic U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker, unable to lock up to Whitefish Bay (due to an engineering casualty) where ice conditions are in excess of 2-feet in spots covered by 3-feet of snow, U.S.-flagged Lakers remain locked in ice. A capable icebreaker from Canada was deployed to the area but abruptly departed to care for a couple of Canadian ships going to Thunder Bay, Ontario. Meanwhile the system remains essentially closed with U.S. vessels trapped in the lower St. Marys River and Whitefish Bay. No ship has passed downbound from Duluth at this point and no cargo has been delivered to the steel mills on the southern lakes.
The early opening of the St. Lawarnce Seaway and Welland Canal has put greater demand on a mission that is not adequately resourced. Prioritization of Canadian vessels and Canadian ports comes at the expense of American Lakers and American ports.
While the southern Great Lakes are mostly ice-free, conditions to the north are extremely difficult requiring a heavy icebreaker in multiple locations. U.S. manufacturing like steel production continues to feel the pain of an inadequate U.S. Coast Guard icebreaking fleet. As witnessed over the past day, depending on the Canadians to move U.S. cargo is not a reasonable expectation and definitely not in the best interest of the U.S. economy.
