Jaxport will get worse without action on dredging

[thelakelander]

No idea on how to fund things but more predictions of economic collapse if we can't find a way to dredge soon....

The Jacksonville Port Authority stands at a critical crossroads and without action, its options will soon get worse, a maritime business leader says.

Cargo ships are being built bigger and bigger, and the port needs to upgrade soon in order to accommodate them.

full article: http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2013/06/20/jaxport-at-a-crossroads-for-global-cargo.html

[Cheshire Cat]

I don't know that will happen any time soon though Ennis especially considering who our current mayor and governor are.

I often wonder with all the discussion of larger and larger Cargo ships if anyone is thinking about how quickly we are losing the source of fuel needed to drive the engines of these bigger and better boats?  If some of the predictors about our dwindling fuel and it's rising costs are accurate, might we find ourselves with a deeper and environmentally impacted waterway whose economic value will be lost due to rising costs or lack of fuel? This is according to many experts a possibility just a few short decades down the road and our children will be left wondering why we were so shortsighted.

[Cheshire Cat]

Riverkeeper concerned about dredging.

The Riverkeeper has criticized the Corps for not finishing environmental analyses in time for the draft report’s release.

At the forum, a panel of experts will provide an overview of the project, potential impacts to water quality and wildlife, and shortcomings of the study.

http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2013/07/08/riverkeeper-forum-to-discuss.html

[Ocklawaha]

The larger ships will be ideal candidates for nuke power as they are as large or larger then our super carriers.

[JayBird]

The larger ships will be ideal candidates for nuke power as they are as large or larger then our super carriers.

Agreed however, with a lot of ships operated in the Middle East, how do we control? A nuclear ship being detonated at Talleyrand I believe would flatten downtown.

[Dog Walker]

The bigger ships actually use less fuel per container carried than the smaller ones.  Fueling them will not be a problem for many, many decades.

[spuwho]

For those wondering what happens when you dredge a deep channel and allow larger, longer drafts into your waterway should watch this video.

http://youtu.be/8sEdgHH9F10

Now, the Corps of Engineers can mitigate this behavior pretty easily by creating draft basins that absorb the effects.  But its not clear if these draft basins are part of the overall cost of the dredge.

Something to pay attention to.

[Garden guy]

With stewards like us...our river is ..fucked..money money money....

[mbwright]

Not to mention the salt intrusion, going further south. 

[MEGATRON]

Biggest problem with the port is that it is asking for hundreds of millions for dredging without any plan in place to bring those larger ships to Jacksonville.  The Port authority drafted a master plan last year because it was required by legislation.  It was the first master plan the port has had.  That's no way to run a business.

[MEGATRON]

Also, natural gas is more likely the future fuel source of these ships than nuclear power.  Sea Star/Tote is currently building the two largest NG-powered ships in the world.