Klobuchar receives maritime industry award
DULUTH — U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., on Friday was named the 2013 Great Lakes Legislator of the Year by the Great Lakes Maritime Task Force.
The award, presented by Gregg Ruhl, managing director of the Duluth-based Great Lakes Fleet, was given to Klobuchar for her continued support of dredging and harbor maintenance at ports across the Great Lakes.
“Water infrastructure like the Port of Duluth is vital to keeping towns and businesses afloat across the Great Lakes,” Klobuchar said. “I am honored to have received this award, and I will continue to fight to ensure that the Great Lakes region has the 21st century infrastructure it needs to continue to deliver goods across the world.”
Klobuchar successfully worked to include a provision in the Water Resources Development Act, which the Senate passed this year, to address the dredging backlog on the Great Lakes system and ensure dredging and maintenance at the Port of Duluth-Superior, Wis. The legislation ensures the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund is used for maintaining the constructed widths and depths of commercial ports and harbors, which includes dredging on the Great Lakes.