THE St Lawrence River near Montreal have hit 10-year lows in water levels, said Bryce Carmichael, hydraulic engineer and US section secretary for the International Lake Ontario-St Lawrence River Board, reports Bloomberg.
Seaway managers in Canada and the US are monitoring the conditions and considering boosting the flow of water from Lake Ontario to make conditions safer for commercial ships, according to Carmichael.
The shrinking water levels in Canada come as closures on the Mississippi River threaten exports of corn and soybeans just as farmers are in the thick of harvest, threatening to cause a buildup of supplies. The phenomenon has also hit Europe and China, where the Rhine River and Yangtze shrunk this year.
'It's been very low for a while,' said Frank Seglenieks, Canadian co-chairman of the International Lake Ontario-St Lawrence River Board of Control, noting the basin has been dry this spring and summer, impacting water levels. 'When we have lower water levels ships do have to lighten their loads.'
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Seaway managers in Canada and the US are monitoring the conditions and considering boosting the flow of water from Lake Ontario to make conditions safer for commercial ships, according to Carmichael.
The shrinking water levels in Canada come as closures on the Mississippi River threaten exports of corn and soybeans just as farmers are in the thick of harvest, threatening to cause a buildup of supplies. The phenomenon has also hit Europe and China, where the Rhine River and Yangtze shrunk this year.
'It's been very low for a while,' said Frank Seglenieks, Canadian co-chairman of the International Lake Ontario-St Lawrence River Board of Control, noting the basin has been dry this spring and summer, impacting water levels. 'When we have lower water levels ships do have to lighten their loads.'
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