LOCK 25 ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER RECEIVES DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION FUNDS

January 19, 2022
An aerial view of a bridge over a large body of water.

Funding to complete design and construction for Lock 25 near Winfield, MO on the Mississippi River is included in the Army Corps of Engineers budget presented to Congress today to allocate the funding named in the infrastructure package passed on November 5. Total allocated funds for Lock 25 are $732 million dollars.

 

Also included in the budget are $466 million for the Kentucky Lock on the Tennessee River, $858 million for Montgomery Lock on the Ohio River, $52 million for TJ O’Brien Lock and Dam on the Illinois River, $109 million for the Three Rivers at the Port of Pittsburgh, totaling $2.22 billion in total inland construction.

“The IL Corn Growers Association and the diverse partners brought together by Waterways Council Inc. have worked on updating our inland waterways infrastructure for more than two decades. The announcement that we have finally seen allocation of funds to begin construction on Lock 25 on the Mississippi River is the culmination of all our efforts. Our hope is that the allocation of these funds will begin a waterfall of work on the infrastructure on the Illinois and Mississippi River,” said Marty Marr, President of the association and New Berlin, IL farmer.

 

Marr also thanked Senator Dick Durbin and Congresswoman Cheri Bustos, as well as other members of the Illinois delegation, for their tireless advocacy to the projects prioritized in the Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Project. Lock 25 is the highest priority on this project list. NESP also prioritizes building six additional 1,200-foot locks at the most congested locations, all on the Mississippi and Illinois River.

 

New 1,200-foot lock chambers will allow a typical tow to traverse the river without breaking into pieces to fit through 600-foot chambers. A new chamber will also create a two-way river, with tows able to use both the 1,200-foot and the 600-foot chamber. Both of these benefits increase efficiency for river users and make the most environmentally friendly commodity transport option even more appealing for businesses and farmers.

 

A closure of Lock and Dam 25 due to lock age and failure for just one year would result in a loss of more than 7,000 jobs, $1.3 billion of labor income, and approximately $2.4 billion of economic activity to the corn and soybean industry alone. This investment in the infrastructure will avoid losses like these.

Justin Moore headshot
By Tara Desmond July 23, 2025
Meet Justin Moore a staff member at IL Corn.
washington dc photo
By Lindsay Croke July 17, 2025
“If such language is included in the policy recommendations, it could significantly hamper the work of America’s farmers and raise prices on consumers without providing any additional layer of safety for the American public,” the letter said. “If the pesticides in the original report were to disappear completely, crop
FFA students at USDA
By Lyndi Allen July 17, 2025
IL Corn leaders met with lawmakers in Washington, D.C. to discuss key ag priorities like trade, conservation, ethanol, and lock and dam infrastructure, while mentoring the next generation of advocates from Illinois FFA.
corn
By Lydia Rogers July 14, 2025
Debunking Myths
headshot of Shelby Watson
By Tara Desmond July 14, 2025
We recently caught up with Shelby Watson following the announcement of her promotion to Director, The Americas & Allied Industry Programs at USAPEEC. In her expanded role, Shelby is taking on new responsibilities across Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean.
Crops destroyed by storm
By Lyndi Allen July 10, 2025
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released the new Supplemental Disaster Relief Program, providing assistance to farmers with crop losses due to natural disasters in 2023 and 2024.
Show More