Trends in U.S. Grain Exports, and the Barge Share of These Exports: Implications for Lock Extensions on the Upper Mississippi River

摘要

Grain is the dominant commodity moving by barge on the Upper Mississippi Riverrn(UMR). In 2000, corn, wheat and soybeans accounted for 59 percent of the 39.2 million tons ofrnfreight that transited Lock and Dam 25, the last lock on the UMR.1 With grain being therndominant commodity in barge shipments, much of the political support for UMR navigationrnimprovements comes from agricultural shipper and producer groups.2 Thus, expected growth ofrngrain barge traffic on the UMR is the cornerstone of the benefit-cost analysis and political effortsrnto extend the locks on the UMR from 600-feet to 1,200-feet.