Barge traffic slowly gets back to normal

~ Labor shortage in Gulf Coast area keeps shipping at a slower pace.

Area grain elevator operators and dealers say there is no longer a shortage of barges, but ports along in the Gulf Coast still aren't back to full working capacity.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita disrupted the barge transportation system, and area grain elevators and dealers were forced to store corn on the ground because there was nowhere else to put it. Barges were going down the Mississippi River, but weren't able to travel up fast enough to meet a heavy demand for transportation.

A pile of corn still sits on the ground at Cargill Inc.'s Buffalo Island location near Charleston, Mo., said Paul Thell, farm service group manager. But that pile is shrinking every day.

"It's slowly but steadily improving," Thell said. "We're over the worst of it now."

At the beginning of October, Cargill managers at Buffalo Island weren't sure when they could expect a barge to arrive.

"Barges are coming on a regular basis, pretty much whenever we need them," Thell said. "When the grain needs to be moved, that's when we arrange the barges to come in."

Consolidated Grain and Barge regional manager Scott Lawson said the barge availability situation has become relaxed.

"It's not perfect, but it is getting better," he said. "I'll say barge traffic was reduced 50 percent versus a normal season. So yeah, it was definitely a trying time."

Corn harvesting season is over, and about 30 percent of soybeans in the area are left to be harvested, Thell said.

Port facilities are currently operating at about two-thirds capacity in the Gulf area, but remain plagued by a shortage of labor to unload barges and turn them around, said Floyd Gaibler, a deputy undersecretary at the Department of Agriculture.

"We are improving the barge unloading and reloading turnaround speed in the Gulf area, but it is definitely slower than everyone wants," said Mark J. Carr, spokesman for MEMCO Barge Line. "Our industry has faced the same problems as the entire community in the Gulf, displaced workers and the capacity of clients and suppliers trying to rebuild their facilities."

Farmers may be the hardest hit this year. According to the Agriculture Department, farmers have suffered more than $1.7 billion in crop losses this year from the effects of the hurricanes, and a lingering Midwestern drought.

Leaders of the Corps of Engineers said the river should remain navigable despite low water levels due to the drought.

Maj. Gen. Don T. Riley, director of civil works for the Corps, said dry weather could keep water levels low on the Mississippi River over the next six months. But he predicted they are unlikely to drop below stages reached earlier this year.

"Each year has its unique challenges and I don't know that there ever is a year that I can really say is normal," Lawson said. "This year probably did have some more challenges but I think things are as close to normalcy as they can be."

jfreeze@semissourian.com

The Associated Press contributed to the story.