Posted on August 16, 2016
By Heather Regan-White, Southwest Daily News
Bill Rase, Director of the Port of Lake Charles, said new sources of funding for local dredging is crucial.
“We’ve got about a four-year window and after that, we can either continue giving the (Army) Corps (Engineers) money for dredging and not be a port, or be a port and not contribute to dredging the Calcasieu Ship Channel,” said Rase.
The director spoke at the Sulphur Rotary Club meeting Wednesday, August 10, about the port’s growing role in the energy sector. The Corps recently listed the Port of Lake Charles as one of the top five energy ports in the country.
Rase said projects coming to Southwest Louisiana will double deep draft vessel traffic. To support that, the Calcasieu Ship Channel must maintain a certain depth. “The channel rarely carries those dimensions,” he said. Between $30 million and $40 million is needed annually to comply. Rase said the port is now seeking assistance from local industry. “We can’t sustain dredging alone,” he said.
The Port of Lake Charles was ranked the 11th busiest port in the country, by tonnage, in 2013. It is expected to move up in the very near future. A study done by consultants contracted by the port estimates that, “for the people in Calcasieu and Cameron parishes, 46 cents of every dollar in their pockets comes from the Calcasieu Ship Channel.”
The study also found that the port facilitates 36,000 jobs in Southwest Louisiana, with a projected increase of 9,000 by 2023. It facilitates $5.7 billion in revenue, with a projected increase of $4.4 billion by 2023. And it generates $118.8 million in local taxes, with a projected increase of $155.2 million by 2023.
The Calcasieu Chip Channel and the Mississippi River are the two main deep draft channels in the state. The far slower flow of the Calcasieu River, (411 cubic feet per second as compared to the Mississippi’s 477,000 cfs), necessitates more frequent dredging. The Port of South Louisiana on the Mississippi doesn’t bear any of the dredging costs.
But the Lake Charles Port has to pay a portion. And unlike dredging of the Mississippi, dredging of the Calcasieu has to comply with coastal consistency requirements and prove that the spoils of the dredging will be put to good use elsewhere. “The beneficial use, even though it’s a great thing to do, costs about five to six times more to do than normal dredging,” said Rase.
“We keep working to convince the state that we are valuable participants in the state’s economic condition,” he continued.
Rase said the administration of Gov. Jon Bel Edwards has been more receptive to meeting with port officials than the last administration. “We got zero response to about 15 requests to meet with Gov. Jindal,” he said. “We’ve met with Gov. Edwards and his staff five times so far.”
Rase said the port invests heavily in the Southwest Louisiana community. They help sponsor the Chennault International Airshow, support the SWLA Economic Development Alliance, invested in the Cove Lane interchange, and sponsor the Cal-Cam Rice Association’s annual Rice Cook-off to educate students on the impact of the rice industry in the region. They’ve also established scholarship funds for SOWELA and McNeese State University students pursuing STEM education.
The port also acts as a safe haven for vessels during hurricanes. They harbored 1,500 vessels for local owners during one of the recent hurricanes.
The port’s dredge spoils are used to enrich local wetlands. And the port took on some of the costs for extending the operational hours of the Calcasieu River Salt Water Barrier to accommodate recreational boaters, emergency response vessels, and commercial activity. Rase said that otherwise, the Corps was going to close the barrier at 5 p.m. every day.
For more information visit www.PortLC.com.
