Big Muddy Speaker Series presents:
Is Missouri River navigation worth the cost?
The management and engineering of the Missouri River, and the entire Inland Waterway System (IWS) it is a part of (of which the largest part is in the Mississippi River watershed), is driven in large part by the needs of the navigation industry. This has real effects on the ecology and hydrology of the river and the on the communities that live along it. And large public costs for infrastructure maintenance and upgrading.
For the Missouri, river flows are managed through the system of dams and reservoirs to boost late summer flows, and lower river itself has been engineered and armored to maintain a 300 foot-wide and 9 feet deep navigation channel.
A comparison of the infrastructure costs paid by the railroad and river navigation industry.
Provided by Missouri Coalition for the Environment
Brad Walker, Big Rivers Director of the Mo. Coalition for the Environment, will explore the public benefit of the IWS, reveal what has been the environmental impact of the IWS, and finally compare these costs and benefits of barge transport with its major competitor– rail.
Meet Your Presenter
Brad Walker
, Big Rivers Director of the Mo. Coalition for the Environment
Prior to his work in the conservation and environmental sector Brad Walker worked for over 20 years in the construction industry, primarily performing construction management for large wastewater treatment plants in the western US. He then spent two years in Jamaica in the U.S. Peace Corps. For the last nine years he has worked on river issues on the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. Brad has a B.S in Civil Engineering and a M.A. in Geography.
Related Presentations
Resources & Links
Dig deeper for more info on this topic
Some related articles from Brad Walker's River Blog
- "River Barge Industry Vies for Subsidy Leadership with Space Travel"
- "Nefarious Connections"
- "Special Interests Gather to Promote Another Barge Load of Subsidies"
- Read more of Brad's blog on a variety of river policy issues.
Other Views
- Robert Kelley Schneider's take on Missouri River Navigation costs - "No Longer Worth the Price - the Missouri River Navigation Project"
- 2013 Infrastructure Report Card for the Inland Waterways by American Society for Civil Engineers (they gave it a D-)
- Key Issues on the Waterways Council website, an industry group promoting upgrading of the Inland Waterway System.
The Big Muddy Speaker Series in Rocheport
is hosted by these wonderful partners.
- Missouri River Relief
- Friends of Big Muddy
- Columbia Fish & Wildlife Conservation Office (USFWS)
- Les Bourgeois Vineyards
- Big Muddy National Fish & Wildlife Refuge
Click here for a list of upcoming presentations»
Special thanks to Les Bourgeois Vineyards for giving us the opportunity to use their beautiful space overlooking the Missouri River. All speakers are presenting for free! Thank you all for sharing your knowledge with us!
The Big Muddy Speaker Series also takes place monthly in Kansas City and St. Charles.
The Big Muddy Speaker Series is partially funded by the Columbia Ecological Services Field Office (USFWS) and the Mo. Dept. of Conservation.
Upcoming Presentations
Missouri River Relief: 25 Years on the Big Muddy
November 10, 2026Columbia, MO
Join us for a journey through time celebrating 25 years of Missouri River Relief's work on the Big Muddy.
See Event
Plastic Pollution, Gulf Hypoxia, and Water Quality
November 11, 2026St Charles, MO
Jennifer Wendt from MidAmerica Clean Future guides us through understanding regional water quality challenges.
See Event