St. Lawrence Seaway: Navigation on Gulf of Saint Lawrence Estuary and the St. Lawrence River

The entire Great Lakes watershed drains through Lake Ontario and flows into the St. Lawrence River near Cape Vincent, New York. The St. Lawrence River then flows northeast through Quebec and Ontario and into the largest estuary in the world, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. The St. Lawrence River, between Ontario, Canada and New York, United States is part of the international boundary. The St. Lawrence Seaway permits ocean-going vessels to go from the Great Lakes of North America to the Atlantic Ocean. Navigation of the St. Lawrence was not possible until canals were built around the Lachine Rapids near Montreal. The canals allowed ships to by-passes the rapids and travel into Lake Ontario. In 1954, the United States agreed to joint development of the international sections of the St. Lawrence River. The St. Lawrence Seaway was opened in 1959 and permits ocean-going ships to go all the way to the southwest corner of Lake Superior near Duluth, Minnesota. During WWII, German U-boats sank several merchant marine ships and three Canadian warships in the lower St. Lawrence River, the Strait of Belle Isle, Cabot Strait and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. The bottom of the St. Lawrence River is littered with the wreckage of these ships and other ships which were lost during storms. The International Joint Commission recommended that the Canada and United States jointly improve navigation on the St. Lawrence River from Lake Ontario to Montreal. This lead to the signing of the St. Lawrence Treaty. Steel companies supported the treaties since the new St. Lawrence Seaway could get Labrador iron ore to the United States mills in the Great Lakes region. The Seaway’s power dams generate 3.5 million kilowatts of electricity which is provided to industry and to thousands of consumers in the New York State, New England and parts of Canada. The electric power generated by the project would be shared equally. This paper highlights how the geological and landscape properties of the St. Lawrence River watershed were responsible for the successful economic development of this important and historically-rich region of North America. Planned economic and urban development of the St. Lawrence River basin by USACE was blocked by the “Save the River” campaign. Environmental challenges include disposal of treated and untreated wastewater, water pollution, and shore erosion, invasive species and flooding.

St Lawrence Seaway: Eastern Great Lakes, the Niagara River and Welland Canal Replacement, Maintenance and Protection

The Eastern Great Lakes region covers 51,000 square km of land, and is home to 15 million people. This region is rich in natural resources, industry and agriculture, and forms the heartland of both Canada and the United States. The development of this region has a history that is closely tied to waterways, and the development of canals that promoted growth and prosperity. The St. Lawrence Seaway connects Western and Eastern Great Lakes to the St Lawrence River and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. The New York State Canal and the St. Lawrence Seaway were linked by the Oswego canal and provided a shorter route for cargo via barges to New York City. The New York State (NYS) Barge Canal and the St. Lawrence Seaway provided pathways for the settlement of the Eastern Great Lakes. Lake Erie drains into Lake Ontario via the Niagara River but the river was not navigable due to the obstacles of Niagara Falls and the Niagara Escarpment. Until the 1820s ships could not travel into Lake Erie. It was not possible to engineer a bypass of Niagara Falls with a series of locks due to the 100 m high Niagara escarpment. This escarpment obstacle to Niagara River navigation was overcome in 1829 with the completion of the first of four Welland Canals with locks 40 kilometers west of the Niagara River through the glacial till and alluvium that overlays the Niagara Escarpment. This permitted ocean going ships to enter Lake Erie and to continue on to Lake Michigan, Lake Huron and Lake Superior. The Eastern Great Lake shorelines, river banks and canals are actively eroding as a consequence of high surface water levels and flooding. The settlement of millions of people into the Eastern Great Lakes via the NYS Barge Canal and St. Lawrence Seaway migration pathways have created environmental and natural resource risks and challenges. These challenges and risks include deterioration of the Fourth Welland Canal and the need to replace it with the Fifth Welland Canal, industrial and urban wastewater disposal, shoreline, river bank and canal erosion as results of high water levels, the building of structures on the shoreline banks, invasive species and flooding.

Mississippi River Delta: Land Subsidence and Coastal Erosion

The Mississippi River Delta is a major center for transportation, industry, human population and ecosystem services. Critical areas included energy production, navigation, fisheries, flood protection of coastal communities, and restoration of damaged habitats. Complex environmental management in a great river system requires broad-base complex science, engineering and monitoring. A major national and state objective has become the restoration of the Mississippi River Delta that is threatened by subsidence, flooding, storm surges, compaction, oil extraction and gas extraction. The primary objectives of the paper are to document the landscape and geological properties of the Mississippi River Delta which have contributed to the successful resource and economic development of a historically-rich region of North America and to document the natural resource and environmental risks to the Mississippi River Delta. Economic and urban development of the Mississippi River Delta by the oil and gas industry and creation of levees by the USACE has contributed to land subsidence problems. Environmental challenges include land subsidence as a result of the pumping of vast amounts of oil and gas, the lack of sediment deposition in the Mississippi River Delta as a result of a system of levees, coastal erosion impacts of hurricanes, disposal of untreated and treated wastewater, periodic flooding and water pollution.

Food Security: Impact of European Settlement and Infrastructure on Columbia River Salmon Migration

The 2000 km Columbia River is the longest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. It starts in British Columbia, Canada and flows through the states of Oregon and Washington before discharging into Pacific Ocean near Cape Disappointment. The mouth of the Columbia River is a deep water harbor and 180 km of the river can be accessed by navigation. Based on flow volume, the river is the 4th largest river in the United States. The headwaters and approximately 800 km of the Columbia River lie in Canada. Columbia Lake and the Columbia Wetlands are located in British Columbia and are the headwaters of the Columbia River. The lake has an elevation of 820 m above sea level and drains to the Pacific Ocean near Astoria, Oregon. The Ocean tides flow up river to Portland, Oregon. This paper highlights how the geological and landscape resources of the Columbia River and tributaries watershed contributed to the economic development of this historically rich region of North America. The Columbia River is one of the most biologically diverse freshwater systems in the United States. The Columbia River system with trails and cruise ships was designed to increase use of the Columbia River, to promote recreational tourism, and to create a generation of people who are willing to protect and provide environmental stewardship of the river basin resources.

Snake River: A Navigation and Spawning Dilemma

The Snake River in northwestern United States is 1735 km long, the largest tributary of the Columbia River and is the 13th longest river in the United States. The Snake River drainage basin includes parts of six U.S. states. The Snake River Plain was created by a volcanic hotspot that lies beneath Yellow-stone National Park. The previous Ice Age carved out canyons, cliffs and waterfalls along the middle and lower Snake River. The Missoula Flood was to the north and Bonneville Flood to the south altered the Snake River and surrounding landscape. The Snake River has a drainage basin of 282,000 km2 in the states of Oregon, Washington, Utah, Nevada and Idaho. The Snake River drops from mountain elevations of 3000 m to its confluence with the Columbia River. The river is one of the most biologically diverse freshwater systems in the United States with trails designed to promote recreational tourism, increase use of the Snake River and create generations of people who care about the river and are willing to protect and provide environmental stewardship of the river watershed resources.