An Iowa State University economist on Monday said that grain exports wouldn't justify the river-lock expansions envisioned by a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study.
Critics say the corps ordered the study doctored it to justify the proposed spending.
Baumel spoke Monday in Washington, D.C., in an appearance paid for by the Sierra Club. Senior corps economist Donald Sweeney last month filed an affidavit with federal investigators claiming the corps manipulated formulas to exaggerate the benefits of the work. The corps is checking into doubling the length of some locks so towboats wouldn't have to be split in two to pass through. Grain interests say that is critical to save shipping costs. Baumel said taxpayers would pay 50 percent to 80 percent of the tab for the work.