Port of Toledo creates $1 billion impact for region
Written by Duane Ramsey | | news@toledofreepress.comThe Port of Toledo makes an economic impact in Northwest Ohio by generating nearly 7,000 jobs with vessel and cargo activity resulting in more than $1 billion in economic impact.
The numbers were validated by a study conducted in the entire St. Lawrence Seaway system and released Dec. 14 by the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority and St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation.
“The results of the economic impact study clearly show the positive impact of our seaport’s operations to the entire Northwest Ohio region. It’s all the facilities and terminals along the Maumee River that contribute to the success of the port,” said Paul Toth, president and CEO of the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority, at a news conference. “We’re here to share the good news about the economic impact of the port, which validates what we do every day.”
Terry Johnson Jr., left, and Paul Toth discusss the port’s impact Dec. 14.
Toth said the Port of Toledo has invested $25 million during the past 18 months in land, materials handling equipment, two new cranes and a railroad loop to help move cargo from ship to rail and rail to ship.
“It shows the vision of the port board and staff to make these investments to take advantage of the opportunities out there. Northwest Ohio is the right place to be for transportation and logistics,” Toth said.
Thousands of people are employed directly or indirectly as a result of Toledo’s cargo handling operations. It includes not only dock workers but jobs with railroad and trucking companies, steamship agents, freight forwarders and many others, Toth said.
About 2,521 jobs are directly generated by the port’s marine vessel and cargo activity, according to the report. As a result of the local purchases by those individuals holding jobs, an additional 2,688 induced jobs are supported in the regional economy.
The study showed that another 1,763 indirect jobs are supported by $173 million of regional purchases by businesses supplying services at the Port of Toledo marine terminals.
Personal income from those jobs is estimated at $558 million. Business revenue directly related to the cargo activity at the port is estimated at $381 million in the local economy.
The Economic Impacts of the Port of Toledo study, conducted by Martin Associates of Lancaster, Penn., examined the effect of marine cargo activity at the Port of Toledo and through the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System.
“The Port of Toledo is one of the most important ports in the St. Lawrence system and is critical to the success of the entire system as the largest land mass port operated by Midwest Terminals. It’s a port on the move and looking forward,” said Collister “Terry” Johnson Jr., administrator of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corp. based in Washington, D.C.
The Great Lakes and maritime system play a vital role in the economies of the U.S. and Canada by generating a total of $60 billion of economic activity, he added.
The St. Lawrence Seaway is the longest inland system in the world at 2,300 miles with 100 ports and terminals in eight U.S. states and two Canadian provinces, Johnson said.
“Ohio is second only to Michigan in economic impact of the St. Lawrence system and with a lot less coastline and ports,” Toth said.
The Port of Toledo registered nearly 4.8 million metric tons of overseas cargo through the St. Lawrence Seaway in the 2010 navigation season, a 16 percent increase over the 2009 season. A total of 9.8 million metric tons were shipped via 567 vessels through the seaway and Great Lakes systems.
Figures for the 2011 shipping season will be available in January.
Two new locomotives purchased by Midwest Terminals for the purpose of internal switching were unveiled Dec. 14. The locomotives complement other equipment acquired to modernize operations at the Port of Toledo, including two mobile harbor cranes, a material handler and dry-dock bulk conveyor.
Tags: City of Toledo, Paul Toth, Port of Toledo, St. Lawrence Seaway, Terry Johnson Jr.
