WASHINGTON, DC—U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) today urged the Army Corps of Engineers to include funding for locks and dams in Southwestern Pennsylvania in its Fiscal Year 2012 budget. In a letter to Assistant Secretary of the Army Jo-Ellen Darcy, Senator Casey highlighted the importance of waterway projects to the economy of Southwestern Pennsylvania.
“The Port of Pittsburgh is one of the busiest ports in the nation and the system of locks and dams on the three rivers is essential to the region’s economy,” wrote Senator Casey. “According to independent studies, the river system supports 45,000 direct jobs and over 200,000 total jobs. Continued funding for operation and maintenance and navigation on the Monongahela, Ohio and Allegheny Rivers is essential to the region’s economic competitiveness.”
Inclusion of funding for waterway projects in Southwestern Pennsylvania in the 2012 budget is crucial given the uncertainty of funding in 2011. Last year, Senator Casey secured millions of dollars in a draft of the 2011 budget for projects in the region, including $2,000,000 for Locks and Dams 2,3 and 4 on the Monongahela River, $11,500,000 for Emsworth Locks and Dams on the Ohio River and $451,000 for an Upper Ohio Navigation Study. Appropriations bills were blocked at the end of last year.
In the letter, Senator Casey highlights four projects essential to the health of the economy of Southwestern Pennsylvania:
• Lower Monongahela Improvement Project-Locks and Dams 2, 3, and 4 in Westmoreland County: Funding is needed for the continued construction of the Charleroi River chamber. This is part of an on-going project to increase the size of the locks at Charleroi to adjust the pool level and ultimately remove the dam at Elizabeth that will result in transportation savings for the industry.
• Emsworth Dam Rehabilitation Project in Allegheny County: The purpose of this project is to replace the main channel dam gate and scour protection, stabilize back channel abutment and rehabilitate the main channel service bridge. This project is categorized as emergency repairs.
• Upper Ohio Navigation Study for Locks and Dams at Emsworth, Dashields and Montgomery in Allegheny County: Funding is needed for the completion of a feasibility report for the locks and dams at the locations listed above. These are the smallest and oldest locks on the Ohio River which makes for an increasingly unsafe and unreliable situation for navigation.
• Monongahela River Operations and Maintenance at various locations in the Pittsburgh district: The purpose of this project is to replace 100 year old facilities at Lock 3. Repairs are necessary to the elongation of the schedule to remove these locks and dams.
The full text of the letter is below:
Dear Assistant Secretary Darcy:
The purpose of this letter is to express my strong support for key projects in the Pittsburgh region as the U.S. Army Corps prepares its budget requests for fiscal year 2012.
The Port of Pittsburgh is one of the busiest ports in the nation and the system of locks and dams on the three rivers is essential to the region’s economy. According to independent studies, the river system support 45,000 direct jobs and over 200,000 total jobs. Continued funding for operation and maintenance and navigation on the Monongahela, Ohio, and Allegheny Rivers is essential to the region’s economic competitiveness. Specifically, I would like to highlight the following projects:
• Lower Monongahela Improvement Project-Locks and Dams 2, 3, and 4 in Westmoreland County: Funding is needed for the continued construction of the Charleroi River chamber. This is part of an on-going project to increase the size of the locks at Charleroi to adjust the pool level and ultimately remove the dam at Elizabeth that will result in transportation savings for the industry.
• Emsworth Dam Rehabilitation Project in Allegheny County: The purpose of this project is the to replace the main channel dam gate and scour protection, stabilize back channel abutment and rehabilitate the main channel service bridge. This project is categorized as emergency repairs.
• Upper Ohio Navigation Study for Locks and Dams at Emsworth, Dashields and Montgomery in Allegheny County: Funding is needed for the completion of a feasibility report for the locks and dams at the locations listed above. These are the smallest and oldest locks on the Ohio River which makes for an increasingly unsafe and unreliable situation for navigation.
• Monongahela River Operations and Maintenance at various locations in the Pittsburgh district: The purpose of this project is to replace a 100 year old year facilities at Lock 3. Repairs are necessary to the elongation of the schedule to remove these locks and dams.
Although I recognize the fiscal situation facing our country requires austerity, I firmly believe that investments in these projects will help spur economic growth. Alternatively, a failure to invest in these projects at this time would have a devastating effect on the region’s economy. Similarly, businesses that rely on the rivers to transport their materials will see a significant increase in the cost of moving goods to market, which will in turn drive up prices and hamper the economic recovery.
I urge you to prioritize these projects and work to include them in the President’s Budget. Thank you for consideration of my request.
Sincerely,
Robert P. Casey, Jr.
United States Senator
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