The Waterways Council, Inc. recently produced a series of videos, aimed at educating various audiences on inland waterways. The five videos focus on agriculture, labor, shippers, communities and the Army Corps of Engineers.
In the agriculture video, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue kicks it off by saying “I don’t think anything is more important to agriculture than logistics and transportation. That’s ultimately how we get that product to the ultimate end customer and our waterways have been absolutely critical in that effort.”
To watch the agriculture video, click here. To learn more about and watch the other four videos, click here.
In September, NCGA staff will be participating in a Mississippi Riverboat trip with the Army Corps of Engineers from Hannibal to St. Louis, to learn more about river transportation, lock and dam infrastructure and various projects the Corps is working on.
Fast Facts on River Transportation:
- Corn, soybeans and wheat account for nearly 83 percent of farm and food barge volume and ton-miles.
- Barge transportation is used to haul more than 95 percent of the corn exported through the Center Gulf from originations upriver on the Mississippi River.
- In 2017, 14 percent of all intercity freight was transported via the Nation’s waterways, valued at nearly $232 billion.
- In 2015, farm products accounted for 14 percent of waterborne commerce volume and 24 percent waterborne commerce ton-miles. A ton-mile is the number of tons multiplied by distance. When barge traffic is measured in ton-miles, food and farm products jump from the third-largest commodity to first.
