The U.

Monday, January 24, 2000

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has issued an interim feasibility report on improvements at the Greenup Locks and Dam, calling for an almost $200 million renovation.

The Louisville, Ky., and Huntington, W.Va., corps began working on the report some time ago to address river traffic needs at Greenup and at the J.T. Myers Lock and Dam in western Kentucky, as part of the broader Ohio River Mainstem Study.

The 1,300-page, seven-volume Corps of Engineers report released this month outlines specific repairs, maintenance and future upkeep of the locks – the two highest priority structures on the river, according to the study.

Myers and Greenup, the most heavily used locks on the Ohio River, experience frequent traffic delays.

"When the longer 1,200-foot long chamber at either of these facilities are closed due to maintenance or accidents, all traffic must lock through the smaller, landside 600-foot long chamber," the report stated.

Commercial tows, 55 percent of which are coal barges, frequently encounter long delays. And, as the facilities age, more maintenance will be required.

"Reducing delays can save millions of dollars in transportation costs and also reduce impacts of waiting tows on fish resources in the area," the report stated.

Corps officials began looking at ways to reduce the traffic problems.

The draft report lists three improvements for Greenup:

– Extending the shorter 600-foot lock, the landside chamber, to 1,200 feet in length. (A 1,200-foot chamber means a 1,200-foot tow can be accommodated in the chamber.)

– Installation of a Miter Gate Quick Changeout System. The system provides for significantly faster repairs to the lock gates whenever repairs are required.

– A major rehabilitation of the main lock chamber.

Cost of design and construction is estimated at $193.9 million. If authorized by Congress, the cost will be shared equally between federal government sources and the Inland Waterway Users’ Trust Fund, which is maintained through a waterway diesel fuel tax.

No details on the time construction is expected to take were available.

A public review period for the interim report extends to Feb. 29, with a public hearing set for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 9, at the Greenup County High School cafeteria, 4011 Ohio River Rd., Lloyd, Ky.

Written comments may be mailed to the corps no later than Feb. 29 at the following address: Veronica Rife, project manager, U.S. Army Engineer District, Louisville, P.O. Box 59, ATTN: PM-C, Louisville, Ky., 40201-0059.

The entire 1,300-page is downloadable from the Internet at the following web address: www.lrl.usace.army.mil/pd/Myers&Greenup/InterimReport.htm.