The American Waterways Operators (AWO), the national trade association for the tugboat, towboat and barge industry, hailed the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision announced April 26 to deny the State of Michigan’s motion to close Chicago area locks.
AWO is gratified that the Supreme Court’s action will keep waterborne commerce flowing and will avoid the impact that closing the locks would have on Midwest consumers and workers employed in the towing industry and other industries that rely on commodities shipped by barge.
AWO has endorsed nine actions other than lock closures put forward by a federal agency consortium in its Asian Carp Control Strategy Framework that should be implemented to stop the Asian carp. AWO remains committed to working in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, EPA, the U.S. Coast Guard, the White House Council on Environmental Quality, and other federal and state agencies to prevent the spread of Asian carp into the Great Lakes while ensuring the free flow of essential commerce.