The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has $60 billion worth of unfunded projects to fix the lock and dam systems on U.S. rivers.
House Reps Cheri Bustos, Dave Loebsack, and Bruce Braley are all pushing for a bill that calls for infrastructure improvements on the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. The house reps will talk about those improvements at Lock and Dam 15 on Tuesday.
The bill is called the Water Infrastructure Now Public-Private Partnership Act. It would encourage private contractors to improve the locks and dams. The bill would hopefully speed up projects on both the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers.
Lock and Dam 15 in Rock Island never closed because of the recent flooding, but locks 16, 17, and 18 all closed two weeks ago because of the flooding. Lock 16 is in Illinois City, Ill. Lock 17 is in New Boston, Ill, and Lock 18 is in Gladstone, Ill.
Tuesday's meeting starts at 10:15 a.m. at Building 328 on the Rock Island Arsenal. The locks and dams from the Quad Cities to Saverton, Mo are now open on the Mississippi River.