In mid-November, President Biden signed into law the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the funding from which, combined with full annual appropriations for inland waterways lock and dam project construction, will provide more than $4 billion over the next five years for priority waterways construction and major rehabilitation projects.
In addition, the bill allocated $4 billion for the operations and maintenance (O&M) account of the US Army Corps of Engineers, the agency that manages the inland waterways, to allow for dredging and other inland waterways O&M projects to compete for funding.
Inland waterways transportation is critical to the nation’s supply chain and benefits American farmers, shippers, manufacturers, steel and energy producers, agribusinesses, construction firms, towboat operators, and US consumers.
The country continues to face tougher global competition, and infrastructure is directly linked to winning on the world stage. The inland waterways that facilitate efficient transportation for US shippers of bulk commodities rely on locks and dams that were largely constructed in the 1930s during the New Deal.
America needs a similar investment now to repair and modernize our foundational infrastructure that includes inland waterways’ locks and dams. The infrastructure bill is a chance to create and sustain jobs, continue to enhance our balance of trade in the agriculture sector, transport energy products that keep us moving, and upgrade our world-class waterways transportation system.
Further, it’s an opportunity to remember that the fourth “R” — for rivers, along with roads, rails, and runways — remains right for America.