He cited 10-hour delays at a lock in Hannibal, Mo., as a recent example of the industry's plight. He also said some scientists doubt the pallid sturgeon is significantly different from the Alabama or shovelnose sturgeons. Natural rivers twist and turn, rise and fall. They are cluttered with back channels and islands, sandbars and shoals. Barge channels need to be straight and deep and reliable.
Dams cause additional damage by blocking fish migrations.
Barges stir up sediments and tear up fish. Last August, Fish and Wildlife officials began meeting with the Corps to discuss the upper Mississippi, a haven for 300 species of migratory birds and 127 species of fish and home to two national wildlife refuges covering 300,000 acres. The two agencies discussed seven threatened or endangered species, but the service eventually focused its concern on two. The bulk of the Mississippi's cargo floats on the lower section of the river, but no one has suggested that the Corps stop maintaining the channel on the upper Mississippi. Administration sources say the service may issue the Corps a jeopardy opinion on the Missouri navigation system sometime in the next few weeks, citing additional dangers to the pallid sturgeon.