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The worst drought
in more than 50 years is having a devastating impact on the Mississippi
River. The Mississippi has become very thin and very narrow, and
if it keeps on dropping there is a very real possibility that all
river traffic could get shut down. And considering the fact that
approximately 60
percent of our grain, 22
percent of our oil and natural gas, and and one-fifth
of our coal travel down the Mississippi River, that would be absolutely
crippling for our economy. It has been estimated that if all Mississippi
River traffic was stopped that it would cost the U.S. economy 300
million dollars a day. So far most of the media coverage of this
historic drought has focused on the impact that it is having on
farmers and ranchers, but the health of the Mississippi River
is also absolutely crucial to the economic success of this nation,
and right now the Mississippi is in incredibly bad shape. In some
areas the river is already 20 feet below normal and the water is
expected to continue to drop. If we have another 12 months of weather
ahead of us similar to what we have seen over the last 12 months
then the mighty Mississippi is going to be a complete and total
disaster zone by this time next year.

Most Americans
simply do not understand how vitally important the Mississippi River
is to all of us. If the Mississippi River continues drying up to
the point where commercial travel is no longer possible, it would
be an absolutely devastating blow to the U.S. economy.

Unfortunately,
vast stretches of the Mississippi are already dangerously low. The
following is an excerpt from a transcript of a CNN report that
aired on August 14th….

You might
think this is some kind of desert just outside of Memphis. It’s
not. I’m actually standing on the exposed bottom of the Mississippi
River. That’s how dramatic the drought impact is being felt here.
Hard to believe, a year ago we were talking about record flooding.
Now, they are worried about a new kind of record: a record low.
The river was three miles wide here, it’s now down to three tenths
of a mile. And that’s causing all kinds of problems. There are
some benefits, I mean, take a look over here: new beach front.
In fact, some quip that now the Mississippi River has more beaches
than the entire state of Florida, which would be funny if it didn’t
have an impact on trade.

A lot of
stuff we use goes up and down the Mississippi River. We are talking
steel, coal, ore, grain. The problem is now a lot of those barges
have had to lighten their loads, and even doing that, they are
still running aground. There is a real fear that there could be
a possibility of closing the Mississippi River. If that happens,
well, all that product that used to be carried cheaply by barge
is now going to be carried more expensively by truck or train.
And guess who is going to pay for all of that.

You can see
video footage of what is happening along the Mississippi right
here.

It really is
amazing that last year we were talking about historic flooding along
the Mississippi and this year we are talking about the Mississippi
possibly drying up.

As I mentioned
earlier, there are some areas along the river that are already 20
feet below normal levels. The following is from a recent article
posted on inquisitr.com….

Just outside
of Memphis the river is 13 feet below normal depth while the National
Weather Service says Vicksburg, Mississippi is 20 feet below normal
levels. Overall the Mississippi is 13 feet below normal averages
for this time of year.

The drying
up river is forcing barge, tugboat and towboat operators to navigate
narrower and more shallow spots in the river, slowing their speeds
as they pass dangerously close to one another. In some parts of
the Mississippi the river is so narrow that one-way traffic is
being utilized.

A lot of barges
have been forced to go with greatly reduced loads so that they will
sit higher in the river, and other commercial craft have been forced
to stop operating completely.

For example,
the Mississippi has dropped so low at this point that the famous
American Queen Steamboat can
no longer safely navigate the river.

Down south,
the Mississippi River has gotten so low that saltwater is
actually starting to move upriver. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
is fighting hard to keep that contained.

Other waterways
in the middle part of the country are in even worse shape.

For example,
a 100
mile stretch of the Platte River has already dried up. Millions
of fish are dying as rivers and streams all over the country
continue to get shallower and warmer as a result of the ongoing
drought.

The last time
the condition of the Mississippi River was this bad was back in
1988. At that time, a lot of barge traffic was stopped completely
and the shipping industry lost approximately a
billion dollars.

If a similar
thing were to happen now, the consequences could potentially be
far worse.

As I wrote
about recently,
a standstill along the Mississippi would cost the U.S. economy about
300 million dollars a day.

In fact, one
towing company that works on the Mississippi says that it has already
been losing about $500,000
a month since May.

In the end,
who is going to pay for all of this?

You and I will.

In fact, this
crisis could end up costing American consumers a
whole lot of money….

So here’s
the math. If you want to raise the average barge one inch above
the water, you’ve got to take off 17-tons of cargo. To raise it
a foot, you’re talking 200 tons.

And since,
according to the American Waterways Operators, moving cargo by
river is $11 a ton cheaper than by train or truck. The more that
now has to be moved on land, well, the more the costs go up. Steven
Barry says, “And, eventually, the consumer’s gonna pay that price
somewhere along the line.”

And considering
the fact that we are already facing a potential food
crisis due to the drought, the last thing we need is for the
Mississippi River to dry up.

So is there
any hope on the horizon for the Mississippi?

Unfortunately,
things do not look promising.

The fall and
the winter are typically drier than the summer is along the Mississippi
River. That means that conditions along the river could actually
get even worse in the months ahead. The following is from a recent
Time
Magazine article….

But without
significant rainfall, which isn’t in any long-range forecasts,
things are likely to get worse. As summer turns to fall, the weather
tends to get drier. Lower temperatures generally mean fewer thunderstorms
and less rainfall.

“Take away
the thunderstorm mechanism and you run into more serious problems,”
says Alex Sosnowski, expert senior meteorologist for AccuWeather.com.
And while droughts tend to be a temporary setback, longer-range
forecasts are troublesome. Sosnowski says he is anticipating an
El Niño weather pattern next year, which would mean below-normal
snowfall and above-average temperatures.

Let us hope
and pray that we don’t see another 12 months similar to the 12 months
that we have just been through.

The U.S. economy
is already in
bad enough shape.

We don’t need
any more major problems on top of what we are already dealing with.

Reprinted
with permission from the Economic
Collapse Blog.

August
17, 2012

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© 2012 Economic
Collapse Blog