[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 30 (Monday, March 14, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2652-S2653]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. LEVIN (for himself and Ms. Stabenow):
  S. 617. A bill to direct the Secretary of the Army to carry out the 
dredging project, Menominee Harbor, Menominee River, Michigan and 
Wisconsin; to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to introduce a 
bill to reauthorize the dredging of the Menominee River and Channel to 
24 and 26 feet, respectively, from their present NOAA-certified depth 
of 20 feet. Congress originally authorized this dredging in 1960 
through Public Law 86-645, which was subsequently deauthorized by the 
Army in an administrative action due to a lack of funding as required 
by the Water Resources Development Act of 1986, Public Law 99-662.
  The Menominee harbor channel depth of 20 feet dates back to 1931. 
While harbor depths of 20 feet may have been adequate for ships of that 
time, a detailed study by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1959 reported 
the size of cargo ships using Menominee, MI and Marinette, WI ports 
increased significantly in the mid-1950's. Unfortunately, many of 
today's modern and more efficient cargo ships cannot safely navigate in 
harbors with 20-foot clearances. Dredging the river and

[[Page S2653]]

channel to 24 and 26 feet would make these ports accessible to the 
larger ships and would be important to the economic growth in 
Menominee, Marinette, and the other regions of the country with which 
they trade. Manufacturing, shipbuilding, and transportation industries 
account for over a third of the region's employment and rely heavily on 
access to competitive port facilities.
  Dredging of the Menominee River and Channel has been the subject of 
no less than a dozen studies submitted to Congress over the past 
century. The 1959 Army Corps of Engineers study recommended dredging to 
the depths I am proposing today and included support from the then-
Governors of Michigan and Wisconsin, and findings of no adverse impact 
by the Departments Interior and Health, Education, and Welfare, and the 
Federal Power Commission. Assessments by the environmental agencies of 
Michigan and Wisconsin referenced in the Corps' report indicated the 
proposed dredging would not harm local fish and wildlife. I urge my 
colleagues to support this bill.
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