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Port to Pay Shippers During Shutdown by High Five Oregon Business, November 12, 2010

The Port of Portland plans to pay shippers for their patronage during a four-month shutdown of the Columbia and Snake Rivers locks.

The maintenance project will shut down maritime trade and entice shippers to switch to ports in Washington - thus the payment.

Barges go through locks at The Dalles, John Day and Lower Monument dams on their way to Portland. It is the cheapest route for exporters.

But the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans to replace the locks, shutting down river traffic for 16 weeks beginning in December.

Shippers would then find it cheaper to truck products to ports in Tacoma or Seattle.

"We'd like to minimize that and retrain as much cargo as possible during the closure," said Tom Imeson, the Port's public affairs director.

Related Pages: Port of Portland to Pay Shippers During Upriver Locks Shutdown by James Mayer, The Oregonian, 11/11/10