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Coastal Wetlands
Maritime Transportation
Phosphorus Control - ErieStat
Strategies(active tab)
Stakeholders are employing a variety of strategies to implement the goals of the Strategy for the Great Lakes- St. Lawrence River Maritime Transportation System.
Goal Efficiency and PerformanceEnvironmental PerformanceTrade and Traffic
Develop and modernize port infrastructure
Updated on: October 28 2019
Great Lakes ports connect land-based and waterborne transportation and are crucial to local economies and regional industries. There are more than 100 ports in the Great Lakes St. Lawrence River Transportation System (MTS), handling an estimated 200 million tonnes of cargo annually. Continuous investments are necessary to support the maintenance of essential port functions and to expand port capacity to further integrate the maritime system into regional transportation networks.
Market the maritime transportation system and its benefits
Updated on: June 14 2019
In order to achieve the goal of increasing the Maritime Transportation System's (MTS) maritime trade and traffic, new shippers and cruise lines must be convinced to use the MTS. Marketing efforts can play an important role in educating prospective system users about the advantages and benefits of MTS maritime shipping. In theory, if potential users are familiar with the system and its value proposition is easily understood, they will be more likely to use it.
Policy reform to reduce barriers to the maritime transportation system
There are a variety of potential barriers to increasing trade and traffic on the Maritime Transportation (MTS), and some of these barriers can be influenced by policymakers. Such policy-relevant barriers to increasing trade and traffic include the seasonal closures of the system, complex customs regulations, and a fragmented regulatory framework.
Optimize maritime transportation system assets
The binational navigation infrastructure underpinning the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Maritime Transportation System (MTS) is critical to the system's viability and global competitiveness. Moving hundreds of millions of goods and materials annually through the world's largest deep-draft inland navigation system requires ongoing investment in physical structures, such as locks, piers and breakwaters; waterway maintenance, especially dredging; and services, such as pilotage, icebreaking and aids to navigation.
Regulatory requirements for reducing emissions
Shipping in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Maritime Transportation System (MTS) is a more energy efficient transportation mode than road or rail transportation, thanks to the large capacity of vessels and the relatively low friction associated with moving a vessel through water. As a result, marine shipping emits the lowest amount of carbon per ton-mile, relative to road or rail transportation.
Policies to prevent the introduction and spread of non-native species
MTS stakeholders in Canada and the United States have developed new policies, partnerships, and technologies to prevent the introduction of new non-native species, or the spread of existing non-native species. Oceangoing ships entering the Maritime Transportation System (MTS) from foreign ports have the potential to introduce non-native species through transfer of ballast water, which is used to help stabilize unloaded or partially-loaded vessels.
Support and implement environmental certification programs
Environmental certification programs support the regional maritime transportation system's efforts to demonstrate progress towards improving the environmental performance of the maritime transportation system. Through certification programs, such as Green Marine, companies voluntarily commit to a process that tracks their environmental performance through a rigorous process that insures transparency.
Collaborative efforts to address environmental challenges
The U.S. and Canadian federal governments, vessel operators, academic partners and others are collaborating in a number of areas to address environmental challenges associated with maritime transportation in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River. This includes investments, research, management practices, and new regulations in the following areas (see investments for additional background):
Great Lakes Commission,
1300 Victors Way Suite 1350,
blueaccounting@glc.org
zebra mussels ©1082492116/Shutterstock
Grass Bay Preserve. © Jason Whalen/Big Foot Media
©Brett Groehler/University of Minnesota Duluth
©varuna/Shutterstock
©Ontario Ministry of Environment, Conservation, and Parks
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