The St Lawrence Seaway, which is a key Canadian shipping
corridor, has become the latest waterway worldwide to face falling water levels
that could impact its capacity to carry traffic. Already this year the Yangtze in
China, the Rhin in Germany and the Mississippi in the USA have had to restrict
traffic because of low water levels.
Parts of the St. Lawrence River near Montreal have hit
10-year lows, according to Bryce Carmichael, hydraulic engineer and US section
secretary for the International Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Board.
He said that seaway managers in Canada and the US were
considering boosting the flow of water from Lake Ontario to make conditions
safer for commercial ships.
River levels on the St Lawrence have decreased
considerably and the latest forecasts by the Canadian Coast Guard anticipated
further drops, according to a customer bulletin from global shipping line
Hapag-Lloyd AG. The company has increased rates to move cargo to and through
Montreal’s port until November 1st.
Frank Seglenieks, Canadian co-chair of the International
Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Board of Control, noted that the basin had been
dry this spring and summer, impacting water levels. He warned that “in general,
when we have lower water levels ships do have to lighten their loads.”
