Washington, D.C. – February 3, 2016 – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Rep. Rick Nolan applauded today’s voice vote on the House floor to send the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, as amended by the Senate, to the President’s desk to be signed into law. The bill authorizes funding for construction of a unique, new fresh water ice- breaking vessel for use on the Great Lakes. This state of the art ship will be specially designed for fresh water ice, which is much harder to break up than sea water ice.
The Great Lakes shipping season – typically March 25 to January 15 – can now eventually be extended thanks to the newly-authorized funding for construction of a fresh water ice breaking vessel.
“The Port of Duluth-Superior supports some 11,500 jobs with hundreds of millions of dollars in wages and $1.5 billion in business revenue,” Nolan said. “Every day we can extend that shipping season makes a difference as we work to create more good work by building on those impressive numbers.”
Vessels supporting tens of thousands of good jobs carrying billions of dollars in cargo between the Port of Duluth-Superior and the Atlantic Ocean will also be able to travel faster and safer under a bipartisan amendment to the Coast Guard Reauthorization bill that Nolan cosponsored with Republican Congressman Bob Gibbs of Pennsylvania.
The bill en route to the President contains a Nolan-sponsored amendment to allow Great Lakes shippers the flexibility to properly discharge ballast water while also protecting marine sanctuaries – a process necessary in order to navigate through bad weather and avoid under water hazards. The amendment is careful to protect shipwrecks and biological sanctuaries that attract divers and sea life and promote tourism, while also protecting Laker crews and valuable cargo.
