Paul Hayden / Lake Superior Magazine
Paul R. Tregurtha
The Paul R. Tregurtha arrives in Duluth in this 2014 file photo.
Early start for shipping season
With minimal ice cover on the Great Lakes – just 9.5 percent overall and about 8 percent coverage on Lake Superior – ships are revving up for intra-lake deliveries before the Soo Locks open, writes MLive’s Garret Ellison:
Opening of the Soo Locks is still more than three weeks away, but American shipping interests have already declared the 2017 Great Lakes commercial navigation season underway this week.
The Interlake Steamship Co. tug & barge combo Dorothy Ann/Pathfinder left winter layup in Erie, Penn., on Feb. 28 to shuttle 15,000 tons of Mesabi range iron ore from the Cleveland bulk terminal up the Cuyahoga River to the ArcelorMittal steel mill. The winding river run is a regular one for the vessel combo.
On Lake Superior, the Paul R. Tregurtha plans to leave winter layup in Superior on March 22 and load coal for delivery to Silver Bay, Minnesota. The Locks are undergoing their annual maintenance and repairs and are scheduled to re-open March 25, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
A shipyard revived
Gary Rinne of TBNewsWatch reports on an exciting development for the Thunder Bay maritime community:
The new owners of the idled Thunder Bay shipyard—which operated for decades as the Port Arthur Shipbuilding Company—say they will be up and running soon with 25 full-time employees, and up to 80 workers during peak periods.
Could Great Lakes restoration funding be cut?
Regional environmentalists and state governments are closely watching how proposed cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency may affect the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative that has pumped millions into state environmental projects.
The initiative debuted in 2010. On our shore it has funded the cleanup of toxic waste, habitat restoration for wildlife like moose and trout, the fight against invasive species and efforts to prevent algal blooms, among other projects.
Reuters reports the Trump administration will propose a 25 percent cut to the EPA’s overall budget. Garret Ellison reports for MLive that the proposed cuts could impact the Great Lakes to the tune of $290 million:
The proposal would virtually eliminate annual Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) funding, slashing it from $300 million to $10 million among other cuts that would altogether reduce the EPA's total budget by a quarter. [...]
The Trump administration says it will release its final budget the week of March 13. The EPA and State Department are expected to take major blows to meet Trump's goal of increasing military spending by 10 percent.
All aboard! Get the chance to say “I’ve been workin’ on the railroad” by signing up for classes to become a volunteer conductor on the North Shore Scenic Railroad in Duluth. Scott Longaker of the Duluth News Tribune has the story.
Great grey owls visit Thunder Bay: A local biologist says it’s an “irruption” of owls. “[Brian Ratcliff] said when the owls’ primary forage crashes, this causes the birds to venture far south of their normal winter range,” writes Gord Ellis for CBC News.
Lake level holds steady: So reports the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in its monthly update. The Lake is now 8 inches above long-term average. Thanks to an early thaw, the Lake “remained stable last month, while on average the Lake declines 5 cm. (2 in.) in February.”
The story of Ontonagon’s first lightkeeper: Thomas Stripe was one of the Michigan town’s first settlers and became the Ontonagon Harbor Lighthouse’s first keeper when it was completed in 1866. His descendants still have strong roots in the area, says Rachel Droze for WLUC-TV.
Minnesota moose numbers stabilized, but remain down from last decade’s high, according to a DNR aerial survey. Ontario, meanwhile, is still evaluating its survey results, says TBNewsWatch.
Wisconsin’s Bayfield County seeks “more leeway from the state to protect water quality from potential farm runoff, but state officials say their hands are tied to the letter of the law,” reports Danielle Kaeding for Wisconsin Public Radio.