Mighty Mississippi too shallow for barges to transport goods

[essentialsaltes]

Mississippi River levels are dropping too low for barges to float
Water levels are approaching their lowest in a generation, forcing emergency dredging to keep commerce flowing

Areas of persistent and developing drought stretch across much of the Mississippi basin, which itself covers 41 percent of the contiguous United States. Though record-setting storms caused catastrophic flooding in parts of the watershed this summer, the past few months have been among the driest on record in parts of the Heartland, at a time of year when river levels are normally hitting their low points. And long-term forecasts suggest that unusually dry weather is likely to continue.

At some spots, gauges reported the Mississippi’s river stages — a measure of water height normally used to evaluate flood conditions — with negative values, an indication of how far below normal levels the waters have receded.

Repeatedly over the past week, water levels have become too low for barges to float, requiring the corps to halt maritime traffic on the river and dredge channels deep enough even for barges carrying lighter-than-normal loads. Days after a queue of stalled river traffic grew to more than 1,700 barges during emergency dredging near Vicksburg, Miss., a separate 24-hour dredging closure began Tuesday near Memphis. More dredging, which routinely costs billions of dollars a year, could be needed if barges continue to run aground.

Plaquemines Parish warned residents on Sept. 28 that drinking water drawn from the Mississippi contained elevated levels of sodium and chloride, a potential health issue for people on dialysis or low-sodium diets. As the southward river flow slackens, a layer of saltwater from the Gulf of Mexico is creeping up the Delta, forming a wedge at the bottom of the river because salt water is heavier than fresh water, Graschel explained.

 

[DaisyDay]

I have been reading "Life on the Mississippi". We don't seem to have progressed much in river management.

 

[essentialsaltes]

Water levels on the Mississippi River are plummeting for the second year in a row​

Every water level gauge along a nearly 400-mile stretch of the Mississippi from the Ohio River to Jackson, Mississippi, is at or below the low-water threshold, according data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and US Geological Survey.

The low water levels have made a unique rock formation in the Mississippi River, usually surrounded by water, accessible by foot, and the Army Corps of Engineers is increasing the size of a levee in Louisiana to prevent saltwater from surging into drinking water in New Orleans.

Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency for Plaquemines Parish in July as saltwater began to impact drinking water systems there, and the US Army Corps of Engineers built a 1,500-foot-wide underwater levee south of New Orleans to prevent it from pushing even farther north.

 

[essentialsaltes]

Army Corps of Engineers to barge 36 million gallons of freshwater a day as saltwater intrusion threatens New Orleans-area drinking water​

As water levels drop, the threat of saltwater intrusion grows in Louisiana as ocean water pushes north into drinking water systems, unimpeded by the Mississippi’s normally mighty flow rate.

The Mississippi River is forecast to reach “historic lows over the next several weeks,” Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said during a Friday news conference.

 

[essentialsaltes]

Army Corps of Engineers to barge 36 million gallons of freshwater a day as saltwater intrusion threatens New Orleans-area drinking water​

New Orleans preparing for three months of salt water in drinking water supply​

Mississippi River flowing backwards for a quarter of the year. That seems normal.

 

[essentialsaltes]

In Texas, water levels are so low a rarely-seen underwater cave and century-old ruins have appeared​

Water levels are so low at Canyon Lake in Texas that an underwater cave and remnants of communities that stood more than a century ago at the site are reappearing.

“I work on the lake, so I’ve been watching it drop,” he told CNN. “We are a little over 18 feet low now. It is very sad to see it but on the other hand, it is very cool seeing some of the hidden caves. As well the history that is coming to the surface.”

Some of Perez’ images show remnants of a house that lay on the lake’s floor. Remnants of the Hancock bridge were also visible.

The towns of Hancock and Crane’s Mill, founded by German immigrants in the 1850s, once occupied the space now filled by water... [the lake is manmade]

 

[USincognito]

There's only a couple of natural lakes in Texas. (The urban legend is that only natural one is Caddo Lake. Instead we have bunch of small, natural oxbow lakes.) The only reason we can sustain the population here is due to extensive reservoirs that have been constructed over the decades. Water is going to become a bigger problem for us than energy over the coming years.

 

[essentialsaltes]

Record-low water levels recorded along the Mississippi River during prime season to ship grain​

Barges aren't being filled to capacity because they'll hit the river bottom.

[Note OP was in 2022; now the 2023 situation (post #3) has beaten those records.]

 

[essentialsaltes]

A salty problem for people near the mouth of the Mississippi is a wakeup call for New Orleans​

This is the fifth year the Corps has built an underwater structure to slow the salt water flow. [But the first time it has done so in back to back years.]

It looks like the future forecast is looking better for the situation, but let's see how things are in Sep/Oct 2024.