Phase II of the dredging of the Old Ore Dock continued on Sunday; however, today's work was made easier by temperatures reaching above 50 degrees that melted much of the ice that Lakeshore Towing's crews battled on Saturday. Crews will continue working seven days per week until finished with the dredging work.
A letter to the editor of the Erie Times News in today's newspaper is critical of the fact that there were no environmental studies done on the impact of a potential spill before the shipment of biofuel through the port last month. This is the response I wrote to the paper today:
I’m writing in response to Tom Hintenberger’s letter questioning the shipment of biofuel through the port of Erie. I watched the loading process daily as it occurred, and can say with certainty that every precaution possible was taken to guard against a spill. Local marine contractor Lakeshore Towing was hired to deploy an oil boom around the tanker Clipper Tobago and provide pollution control in the event of a spill.
The Erie Times-News reported on preliminary discussions regarding the shipment of biofuel through the port of Erie on September 4, 2007. More than three months passed before this shipment was loaded, which would have been ample time for anyone who had a problem with the plans to protest. No one did.
Shipping by rail would have been more dangerous for the environment than shipment via water, as railroad derailments resulting in spills are far more common than waterborne oil spills. And as the biofuel was headed for Europe, it would have been necessary to load the cargo aboard a ship eventually. Lake Erie Biofuels should be applauded for choosing to provide the work to the local port, rather than ship the product via rail to a port on the Eastern Seaboard.
Lake Erie Biofuels and similar companies are the future of well-paying industrial jobs in Erie and should be praised, not criticized, for keeping as much work as possible in the hands of local companies.
DON HENRY stands by as FLATTOP returns barge 401 to the Old Ore Dock on Sunday afternoon.
FLATTOP shifts to the 501.
A few minutes later, FLATTOP and DON HENRY take loaded barge 501 outbound. As there is no visibility over the barge from the pilothouse of FLATTOP, the crew on the tug relies on the lookout on the bow, GPS, and DON HENRY to stay on course..
And below, click to watch a video of today's action. I hope to incorporate video more and more into the Erie Shipping News in the coming year (Right click on it, click "Save Target as" and save to your computer for best viewing):
Large Version (34 MB)
Small Version (16 MB)
1 comment:
Fascinating how your hobby has resulted in helping someone defend themselves from needless accusations.
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