Purpose
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District is responsible for maintaining 244 miles of the Upper Mississippi River 9-foot channel navigation system.
Location
Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Guttenberg, Iowa.
Description
The Upper Mississippi River 9-Foot Channel Navigation Project is located in or contiguous to Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa. The navigation project within the St. Paul District includes 13 locks and dams that are operated and maintained by the Corps. In addition to the locks and dams, the project includes channel maintenance, recreation and natural resource activities.
Approximately 18 million tons of cargo travels through the St. Paul District each year. The system’s infrastructure is comprised of 10 lock chambers 600-feet long, three lock chambers 400-feet long, 170 dam gates, eight fixed crest spillways and 16 miles of embankments acting as dams. Each lock chamber includes two sets of operable steel gates controlling entry to and exit from the lock.
Status
Operation and maintenance of the project are funded annually under the Corps’ Civil Works Operation and Maintenance appropriation. Mississippi River funding allocated to the St. Paul District in recent fiscal years has ranged from $60 million to $70 million.
Authority
The project was authorized as part of the River and Harbor Act approved July 3, 1930. The act authorized the construction, repair and preservation of public works on river and harbors and for other purposes.
Funding
FY 2022:
Miter Gate & Anchorage Replace LD 6 $12,300,000
Miter Gate Replace P&S LD 5 $800,000
Auxiliary Lock Closure LD 3, 4 & 6 $12,300,000
End Cell LD 4 $3,500,000
Dam Gate Seals LD 10 $750,000
Miter Gate Install at LD 5A & 8 $3,600,000
Lock Tainter Valve Replace P&S LD2 $200,000
FY 2023:
Dam Gate & Bridge Painting LD 5 $22,400,000
Auxiliary Lock Closure LD 8 & 9 $9,000,000
Lock Tainter Valve Replace LD2 $1,600,000
FY22 Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act (IIJA):
End Cell P&S LD 5 $300,000
Dam Routine Maintenance P&S LD 5&5A $1,000,000
Guidewall Crib Rehab LD 7 $2,200,000
Guidewall Crib Rehab LD 3 $3,800,000