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GAO-24-106619 1 (2024-01-16)

handle is hein.gao/gaopsv0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Why This Matters Key Takeaways The U.S. Coast Guard maintains and operates icebreaking vessels to promote safety in U.S. waters, along with its other missions. The Coast Guard breaks ice to help keep channels and harbors open to navigation and facilitate the reasonable demands of commerce pursuant to an executive order. This assistance includes establishing and maintaining open tracks in critical waterways, assisting and escorting vessels stuck in ice, and removing hazards created by ice, according to the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard conducts domestic icebreaking operations in three of its nine districts-the Great Lakes, New England, and the Mid-Atlantic. In the Great Lakes, 55 percent of the regional economy is dependent on key shipping channels, according to the Coast Guard. In 2020, industries shipped 100 million tons of iron ore, limestone, coal, and other commodities through the Great Lakes, according to data from the Army Corps of Engineers Waterborne Commerce Statistics Center. Some industry stakeholders who rely on these shipping channels have raised questions about whether the Coast Guard has adequate icebreaking resources available to facilitate commerce. Section 11212 of the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 includes a provision for GAO to review Coast Guard icebreaking operations in the Great Lakes and examine proposed performance standards for the Coast Guard's Great Lakes icebreaking program. This report discusses the associations between ice coverage on the Great Lakes and effects on certain economic indicators, the Coast Guard's icebreaking resource needs, and the potential effects of the proposed standards on the Coast Guard's icebreaking efforts. Great Lakes vessel-based commerce declines during the winter, primarily due to lock closures and weather conditions. We found that the amount of ice coverage on the Great Lakes was generally not associated with selected economic indicators we examined, such as regional unemployment rates and unfilled orders for steel production. Industries may mitigate the effects of delays caused by ice coverage, such as stockpiling iron ore inventory to maintain steel production throughout the winter. The Coast Guard identified heavy icebreaking capability gaps and its reliance on an aging fleet as risks to its ability to conduct its domestic icebreaking mission. As a result, the Coast Guard anticipates needing at least $3 billion in lifecycle costs to replace and acquire new vessels for domestic icebreaking. The proposed standards for the Coast Guard's domestic icebreaking program will largely not have an operational impact. The proposed standards may lead to improvements in data collection and reporting, which could help the Coast Page 1 GAO-24-106619 GREAT LAKES WINTER SHIPPING Page 1 GAO-24-106619 GREAT LAKES WINTER SHIPPING

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