In 2005, a report entitled "Ocean Shipping in the Great Lakes: Transportation Cost Increases That Would Result from a Cessation of Ocean Vessels Shipping" was published. This research activity was funded by The Joyce Foundation and looked at transportation cost increases that would occur if, for whatever reason, ocean shipping ceased in the Great Lakes. The research concluded that shippers would incur additional costs of $55 million annually if this should occur. This is a relatively small amount compared to overall transportation costs associated with the movement of ocean vessel cargo into and out of the Great Lakes region. These cost advantages must be weighed against the costs associated with ocean vessel shipping, especially the cost of invasive species introduction and management. In fact, the research was originally prompted by a number of initiatives related to invasive species and their control through better methods of ballast management.
The principal conclusion of this study is that a cessation of ocean shipping on the Great Lakes would result in a transportation cost penalty of US$54.9 million per year. The study has been peer reviewed by a panel of four peer reviewers from the agricultural economics and economics professions who concluded that the study methodology and conclusions are reasonable. The relatively small transportation cost penalty of US$54.9 million is due to the fact that just 12.3 million metric tons of ocean vessel cargo passed into and out of the Lakes via the MLO Section of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 2002, or some 6.8% of total Great Lakes -St. Lawrence Seaway System tonnage.
Preliminary research suggests that the annual cost to the Great Lakes region from invasive species introduced by shipping may be upwards of $200 million dollars a year because invasions limit the ability of the natural ecosystem to support fisheries, raw water uses, and wildlife watching. This factsheet explores some of these first findings.