PORT OF PORTLAND SEES NEED FOR DEEPER CHANNEL

PORT OF PORTLAND SEES NEED FOR DEEPER CHANNEL    Bill Wyatt, the Port of Portland’s new executive director, said that the deepening of the Columbia River Channel is a critical transportation issue facing the port.
   “The existing 40-foot channel can’t handle the new generation of larger, deep-draft ships —    75 percent of today’s transpacific container fleet — when they are fully loaded,” Wyatt told the Portland City Club.
   “In fact, just this week, Hanjin had to light load and leave behind about 400 containers of Oregon exports,” he said. “Over half of the grain fleet is similarly restricted.”
   Wyatt said that existing shipping trends show the need to deepen the port’s channel.
   The largest containerships today have a maximum draft of 14.5 meters (48 feet), and only a few North American ports on the West and East coasts can accommodate them fully loaded.
   Wyatt also said that plans for the channel deepening project will bring significant improvements in the estuary, including restoring access to 38 miles of spawning streams and restoring 1,250 acres of wetland habitat for
wildlife.