SEMO Port a huge cog in regional economics

If you're not into farming, the Southeast Missouri Regional Port might be an easy thing to forget about.

But if you drive for any length of time to the north or south of Cape Girardeau, you can't help but notice all of the fields. Southeast Missouri boasts some of the most fertile land in the world. Fields of corn, soybeans, rice and cotton stretch acre after acre. Do you ever think about where all of those crops go once they're harvested?

Tucked away off the beaten path of the interstate and widely used commuter highways, nestled against the river near the Scott and Cape Girardeau County lines, the Southeast Missouri Regional Port buzzes daily with activity, the rumbling of trucks and trains and the ever-present river sounds of barges and towboats.

It's kind of a big deal.

The port is coming off a record year for cargo shipped in and out of the facility, according to a story written last week by Erin Ragan.

Ragan reported that during the past 20 years, the value of publicly owned infrastructure assets at SEMO Port has almost doubled, from $12 million to nearly $23 million. Other investment stood at $63 million earlier this year.

The port handled 1.3 million tons of cargo in 2014, breaking a record set in 2012. Most of the freight was shipped by barge, but the port also handles truck and rail car freight. From the port, the freight can be shipped all over the world.

A lot of work makes its way through our regional port. You may not have ever seen the port; you may never even think of it. But it's a busy place, an essential enterprise for the health and growth of the Cape Girardeau region.