Open for Commerce

摘要

The U.S. inland waterways and river system sees 880 million tons of cargo each year, and more than 70 percent of the U.S. vessel traffic passes through the Coast Guard's Eighth District. 1. Several of the most trafficked waterway systems in the country - including the Mississippi River System and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterways - are in the Eighth District, as are seven of the 10 busiest ports in the United States. 2. With the warmer summer weather comes rain and subsequent flooding, which poses a challenge for commerce and the Coast Guard on inland waterways. 3. The Panama Canal expansion project is nearly complete, and the Coast Guard anticipates more vessel traffic on the inland waterways as a result of larger ships passing through the canal with substantially more cargo.