Isakson Urges Departments of Defense, Interior to Conduct Review for the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project in a Timely Manner

'The Port Is Poised to Lead the Way to a New Generation of Job Creation'

Apr 16, 2010

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator and Senate candidate Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., along with U.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., today sent a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar urging the departments to allocate all resources necessary to expeditiously complete the federal reviews associated with the deepening of the Savannah Harbor in Savannah, Ga., and the related repair of the associated federal Freshwater Control System.

The Savannah Harbor Expansion Project has encountered several delays over the years. Completing the federal reviews will allow the Army Corps of Engineers to begin work on the project, which was authorized by the Water Resources Development Act of 1999.

“Much is at stake with regard to this process. The Port of Savannah supports more than 286,000 jobs in Georgia alone, and contributes some $10.8 billion in income, $35.4 billion in revenue, and $1.4 billion in state and local taxes each year,” the letter states. “The port is poised to lead the way to a new generation of job creation, but to do so, the river channel must be deepened to accommodate the much larger vessels which will come with the scheduled completion of the Panama Canal expansion in 2014.”

Isakson has submitted a request to the Senate Appropriations Committee to include funding for the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project in the fiscal year 2011 Energy and Water Appropriations bill.

Text of the letter is below:

Dear Secretary Gates and Secretary Salazar:

We are writing to you jointly because of the unique shared jurisdictional responsibilities concerning the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project (SHEP) and the Savannah River.

The Port of Savannah is the second largest container port on the East Coast and the fourth largest in the country. Savannah handles more than 17 percent of all container cargo on the East Coast and is an essential element for the preservation of existing jobs in America.

Accordingly, we write at this time to urge your respective Departments to allocate all resources necessary to accelerate the federal reviews associated with the pending Savannah Harbor Expansion Project, and, the repair of the associated federal Freshwater Control System which is vital to provide appropriate freshwater flow to the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge (SNWR) and adjacent lands.

With regard to SHEP, the Water Resources Development Act of 1999 authorized the deepening of the Savannah River Navigation Channel from the existing 42 feet to as much as 48 feet. Since that time, this has become what many consider to be the most thoroughly studied navigation project pending in the United States. Congress and the State of Georgia have together spent approximately $47 million to date for required scientific studies. In order to be ready to provide the initial funding for the state’s 40 percent match of federal construction dollars, the State of Georgia approved some $36 million in General Obligation Bonds in FY 2010 and is projected to approve an additional $68.4 million in FY 2011 for that purpose.

After almost 13 years of analysis, we now are at the final stages of federal review before this project moves to the critical Record of Decision (ROD). It is time to bring this effort to conclusion. During the Reconnaissance Study for the project in 1996, approximately 50 percent of the ships were considered operationally constrained. That number has risen to 70 percent and is expected to rise higher with the anticipated fleet that will call the US East Coast in the future.

Much is at stake with regard to this process. The Port of Savannah supports more than 286,000 jobs in Georgia alone, and contributes some $10.8 billion in income, $35.4 billion in revenue, and $1.4 billion in state and local taxes each year. More than 20,000 companies throughout all 50 states utilize Savannah, which is one of the only major ports in the nation that is evenly balanced between exports and imports. The port is poised to lead the way to a new generation of job creation, but to do so, the river channel must be deepened to accommodate the much larger vessels which will come with the scheduled completion of the Panama Canal expansion in 2014.

We do not write to ask you to bypass any of the required environmental or economic analysis associated with SHEP. Indeed, we believe that a fully resourced and unbiased review of SHEP will prove it complies with all requirements and will provide an extraordinarily high economic value for the required investment. We do, however, ask that both the Department of Defense and the Department of Interior ensure that all necessary personnel and other resources be applied to the ROD process to move it to a swift and accurate completion.

Finally, we write in full support of immediate contracting for the repair of the Freshwater Control System in the Savannah River. This is the system of tide gates authorized in 1965 and includes a series of canals, water control structures, and control valves to provide fresh water to the SNWR and adjacent private lands. Over time, problems have developed that have led to corrosion and other deterioration of the system that in turn negatively impacts its ability to carry out its essential environmental functions. The Corps of Engineers has indicated to the Fish and Wildlife Service that is has identified the required funds to repair the gates. We ask that the appropriate Army-funded contracts be awarded to move these repairs forward as soon as possible.

We believe much progress has been made on SHEP and the tide gates, thanks to the work of many individuals in the leadership and the ranks of your Departments. But the fact is that more must be done.

Thank you very much for your attention to these issues. We look forward to your response and stand ready to assist you in any way possible.

Sincerely,

Saxby Chambliss

Johnny Isakson