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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 21, 2007
CONTACT: Geoff Embler or Matt Mackowiak

Sen. Hutchison: Agreement to Deepen Galveston Channel Means More Jobs for Texas
Secured Funding for Critical Port Development Project


WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), Texas’ senior senator, applauded today’s signing of an agreement between the Port of Galveston and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to deepen the Galveston Channel to 45 feet, permitting access to the Port of Galveston for larger ships with heavier loads. Sen. Hutchison secured an authorization for the project in the 1996 Water Resources Development Act.

“This agreement will help keep the Port of Galveston competitive with the rest of the world as an attractive shipping point for large ships,” Sen. Hutchison said. “Deepening the Galveston Channel allows more ships and more cargo to access the port, and that means more business and more jobs for Texas.”

The agreement signed today between the Port of Galveston and Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works John Paul Woodley will permit the dredging of the Galveston Channel from its current depth of 40 feet to a new depth of 45 feet. The deeper channel will allow larger ships to access the port with more cargo. Currently, some ships have to set sail partially empty in order to access the Port of Galveston.

Since Fiscal Year 2002, as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Sen. Hutchison has helped to secure more than $26 million in funding for operations and maintenance for the Galveston Harbor and Channel.

Audio excerts of Sen. Hutchison's remarks at the signing ceremony is available  here .

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