Vessel would help sustain thousands of jobs supported by the Great Lakes’ shipping industry

WASHINGTON – Great Lakes shipping lanes would get a new icebreaking ship to clear the path for commerce during winter months, under legislation introduced in the U.S. House this week. Congressman Vernon J. Ehlers is cosponsoring the Great Lakes Icebreaker Replacement Act (H.R. 1747), which creates plans to build a new Coast Guard icebreaker that would clear shipping lanes to allow iron ore, coal, and other freight to move freely around the region, even during much of the winter.

      “The transportation of goods around the Great Lakes supports thousands of jobs in Michigan and the region,” said Congressman Ehlers. “Many people do not realize the extent to which ice forms on the lakes. The thick, heavy ice can stop a commercial ship in its tracks, and the current, aging fleet of icebreakers struggles to break up the ice on the lakes during the winter months. A new, stronger vessel is needed to make sure these goods can move freely.”

      In addition to supporting jobs, Great Lakes commercial shipping moves over 6.4 million tons of coal to power plants that provide electricity to the area.

      In spring of 2008, U.S.-flag ships operating in the Great Lakes sustained $1.3 million in damages to their hulls because the current icebreaker fleet could not keep shipping channels clear. Five of the Coast Guard’s icebreakers are nearing the end of their useful lives, and two buoytender ships that the Coast Guard uses to break ice cannot handle heavy ice conditions.

      H.R. 1747 authorizes $153 million for the design and construction of a new replacement icebreaker for the Great Lakes. Considerable reductions in cost will be achieved by building the ship to exactly the same design that was used to build the new “Mackinac” icebreaker in 2006. It awaits a vote in the House and Senate.