In 1680, Dollier de Casson of the Sulpician Seminary in Montreal began trying to build a 1.5 metre deep canal to bypass the Lachine rapids between Lake St. Louis and Montreal.
Thus began the 279-year construction project that eventually became the St. Lawrence Seaway.
The seaway celebrated its 50th anniversary March 31 with a ceremony at St. Lambert, Que. It was the same place that Queen Elizabeth and U.S. president Dwight Eisenhower officially opened the 3,700 kilometre waterway in 1959.
The waterway provides a vital link to world markets for prairie grain farmers, along with shippers of other commodities. Over its 50 years, it has transported more than 2.5 billion tonnes of cargo valued at more than $375 billion.
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During ceremonies to mark the anniversary, St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation president Richard Corfe expressed optimism about the waterway’s future.
“Despite today’s challenging economic conditions, we are pressing ahead with a number of initiatives to position the system for success during the next 50 years,” he said.
Among the changes underway are modernization of lock equipment, testing of a hands-free mooring system in the Welland Canal and financial incentives to attract new business.
Those incentives, which include discounts on seaway fees, are credited with attracting 1.7 million tonnes of new cargo in 2008, providing $3.2 million in new revenue.
However, this 50th year may not be one to remember.
Bruce Hodgson, director of market development for the corporation, said tonnage is expected to decline by eight to nine percent from last year’s 40.7 million tonnes.
“It’s all related to the steel industry.”
Outbound shipments of iron ore, coal and coke will be down, as will imports of steel, because of the collapse of the automotive and appliance industries.
Grain is expected to be about the same as last year, while smaller volume traffic, such as salt, machinery, containers and wind turbines, may see small increases.
Tolls will be frozen, the second year of a three-year freeze, so revenues will be down. However, Hodgson said the corporation’s asset renewal program will be unaffected, and new business incentives will remain in place.
“It’s going to be a tough year obviously, but we’re cautiously optimistic,” he said. “We have seen in the last few years that the system is very resilient in adapting to changing traffic flows and that bodes well for the next 50 years.”
By the way, de Caisson’s 1680 canal was successfully completed in 1824, a mere 144 years after the first shovelful of dirt was dug.
It consisted of seven locks, was called the Lachine Canal, and still forms part of the seaway.
Seaway facts and figures
- The St. Lawrence Seaway includes eight locks at the Welland Canal, seven in the Montreal-Lake Ontario section (five Canadian, two U.S.) and four on St. Mary’s River near Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.
- Each lock is 233.5 metres long, 24.4 metres wide and 9.1 metres deep. A lock fills with 91 million litres of water in seven to 10 minutes. Getting through a lock takes about 45 minutes.
- The locks at the 44 kilometre Welland Canal lift boats 100 metres over the Niagara Escarpment. The 306 km Montreal-Lake Ontario section lifts boats 75 metres above sea level.
- It takes about 102 hours to sail from Thunder Bay to Montreal at an average speed of 19 km-h.
- Grain shipments totalled 6.97 million tonnes in the seaway’s first year of operation, representing 37 percent of total seaway cargo. By the 1970s and early 1980s, total grain movement averaged around 20 million tonnes, peaking at 27.7 million in 1978, representing 49 percent of total cargo.
- In 2008, grain shipments were 7.6 million tonnes, accounting for 19 percent of total traffic.
