October 23, 2020
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has announced the approval of the Mid-America Port Commission (MAPC) Port Statistical Area (PSA). This is the largest port statistical area on the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. It includes 189 miles of the Upper Mississippi River and 69 miles of the Illinois River. The Mid-America Port Commission is the only 3-state port commission in the U.S. It includes six (6) Iowa counties, nine (9) Missouri counties and eleven (11) Illinois counties. The MAPC includes over 59 public and private terminals on the two (2) rivers. Public port authorities within the MAPC include the Southeast Iowa Regional Economic and Port Authority, Lewis County (MO) Port District, Marion/Ralls County (MO) Port District, Pike/Lincoln County (MO) Port District and the Mid-America Intermodal Authority Port District (IL). In addition to the help received from the Navigation Data Center of the Corps of Engineers, the Inland Rivers Ports & Terminals Association provided strong support.
A port statistical area is primarily a way the Corps of Engineers helps rank ports based on the amount of cargo shipped or received. Based on a recent 5-year average, the MAPC ranks in the top fifty (50) U.S. ports. This ranking will give the economic development organizations throughout the MAPC legislative boundary a major new marketing tool.
While the port statistical area is not used by the Corps of Engineers to prioritize navigation infrastructure and operations and maintenance projects, it assists the region improve its rankings for operating and maintenance funding of river projects by helping the Corps of Engineers gather more accurate shipping data throughout the MAPC area. One responsibility of the port statistical area is to inform the Corps of Engineers of changes in terminal ownership along with new or decommissioned terminals and docks.
The MAPC was formed in 1998 by a compact between the states of Illinois, Iowa and Missouri. It is governed by a board of nine (9) commissioners, three (3) from each state. One (1) commissioner is appointed by the respective governor and two (2) are appointed collectively by the county boards/commissions within the legislative boundary in each state. More information about the MAPC and the public and private ports and terminals within the MAPC is available on their website www.midamericaport.com.
