ST. PAUL, Minn. – Exactly 3,992 vessels and 766,898 tons of cargo passed through Lock and Dam 1 in Minneapolis, during the 2011 navigation season from March 31-Dec. 3.
The MV Dispatcher was the last tow to pass through Dec. 2.
Of these vessels, 672 were commercial, 3,241 were recreational and 79 were of the other category, such as government watercraft. The commercial traffic was either bound for or departing the Minneapolis Harbor.
In 2010, 5,949 craft passed through Lock and Dam 1 – 589 of them commercial, 4,313 of them recreational and 47 other. In 2010, the amount of commodities transported through this lock was 673,730 tons.
Navigation statistics fluctuate from year to year, depending on the weather, the flows and the length of the navigation season.
Lock and Dam 1 is located across the river from the Ford Motor Plant in St. Paul, Minn., and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District. The Corps constructed it in 1917, reconstructed it in 1929 and completed it in 1923. The lock’s last major rehabilitation occurred from 1978-1980.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, serves the American public in the areas of environmental enhancement, navigation, flood damage reduction, water and wetlands regulation, recreation sites and disaster response. It contributes around $175 million to the five-state district economy. The 700 employees work at more than 40 sites in five upper-Midwest states. For more information, see www.mvp.usace.army.mil.
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Release no. 12-009