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Great Lakes Regional Economic Impact
The Great Lakes-Seaway System is a vital transportation link for North America’s agricultural and industrial heartland.
Roughly 100 million people live and work in the eight U.S. states and two Canadian provinces that border the System. The region accounts for 55 percent of North America’s manufacturing activity and about 50 percent of all North American retail sales. For this reason, Great Lakes shipping is able to effectively have a positive economic impact on North American commerce.
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Economic Contribution$9.6 billion
Total Employment64,000 jobs
Personal income$2.8 billion
Local Purchases$2.5 billion
Total Taxes Paid$1.2 billion
Marine Delivers for Ontario
Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Transportation
- Supports more than 64,000 jobs.
- More than 62 million metric tons of freight are shipped/received through Ontario's Great Lakes ports.
- Major cargoes include iron ore, coal, coke, limestone, steel products, cement, salt, petroleum products, and machinery.
- Ontario's Great Lakes ports are located at Bath, Bowmanville, Bruce Mines, Clarkson, Courtright, Goderich, Hamilton, Heron Bay, Marathon, Meldrum Bay, Michipicoten, Nanticoke, Oakville, Oshawa, Owen Sound, Perry Sound, Picton, Port Colborne, Port Credit, Port Lambton, Port Stanley, Prescott, Sarnia, Sault Ste. Marie, Serpent Harbour, Thessalon, Thunder Bay, Toronto, and Windsor.
- The shipping industry serves Ontario's farmers, steel makers, manufacturers, power generation utilities, refineries, and construction industry.
- Ontario is home to several shipyards and ship repair facilities.
In USD (2010)
Source: The Economic Impacts of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway Navigation System.
Martin Associates (October, 2011).
Economic Contribution$6.2 billion
Total Employment35,000 jobs
Personal income$1.8 billion
Local Purchases$1 billion
Total Taxes Paid$780 million
Marine Delivers for Quebec
Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Transportation
- Supports more than 35,000 jobs.
- More than 57 million metric tons of freight are shipped/received by Quebec ports via the Great Lakes-Seaway system.
- Major cargoes include iron ore, grain, and liquid and dry bulk.
- The St. Lawrence Seaway acts as a valuable connection to Ontario and U.S. markets for ships carrying materials to and from Quebec ports located on the Lower St. Lawrence River.
- The shipping industry serves Quebec’s mining industry and oil refineries. Quebec ports also act as transshipment hubs to transfer grain from western Canada and Ontario to ocean-going vessels to overseas markets.
In USD (2010)
Source: The Economic Impacts of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway Navigation System.
Martin Associates (October, 2011).
Economic Contribution$1.3 billion
Total Employment6,300 jobs
Personal income$440 million
Local Purchases$114 million
Total Taxes Paid$126 million
Marine Delivers for Minnesota
Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Transportation
- Supports over 6,000 jobs.
- More than 30 million tons of freight are shipped/received through Minnesota's Great Lakes ports.
- Major cargoes include iron ore, coal, limestone, agricultural products, cement, machinery, and wind energy components.
- Minnesota's Great Lakes ports are located in Duluth, Silver Bay, Taconite Harbor, and Two Harbors.
- The shipping industry serves Minnesota's farmers, miners, manufacturers, and construction industry.
In USD (2010)
Source: The Economic Impacts of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway Navigation System.
Martin Associates (October, 2011).
Economic Contribution$1.4 billion
Total Employment8,800 jobs
Personal income$622 million
Local Purchases$176 million
Total Taxes Paid$179 million
Marine Delivers for Wisconsin
Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Transportation
- Supports more than 8,000 jobs.
- More than 33 million tons of freight are shipped/received through Wisconsin's Great Lakes ports.
- Major cargoes include iron ore, coal, coke, limestone, corn, soybeans, peas, steel products, cement, salt, pig iron, scrap iron, petroleum products, and machinery.
- Wisconsin's Great Lakes ports are located at Ashland, Green Bay, Manitowoc, Marinette, Milwaukee, Oak Creek, Port Washington, and Superior.
- The shipping industry serves Wisconsin's farmers, manufacturers, power generation utilities, paper manufacturers, and construction industry.
- Wisconsin is home to several shipyards and ship repair facilities.
In USD (2010)
Source: The Economic Impacts of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway Navigation System.
Martin Associates (October, 2011).
Economic Contribution$3.8 billion
Total Employment27,000 jobs
Personal income$1.8 billion
Local Purchases$637 million
Total Taxes Paid$520 million
Marine Delivers for Michigan
Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Transportation
- Supports 27,000 jobs.
- More than 61 million tons of freight are shipped/received through Michigan’s Great Lakes Ports.
- Major cargoes include iron ore, coal, limestone, grain, steel products, cement, petroleum products, and machinery.
- Michigan’s Great Lakes ports are located at Alpena, Brevort, Calcite, Charlevois, Cheboygan, Detroit, Drummond Island, Ecorse, Escanaba, Essexville, Frankfort, Gladstone, Grand Haven, Hancock, Harbor Beach, Holland, Houghton, Ludington, Mackinaw City, Manistee, Marine City, Marquette, Marysville, Menominee, Monroe, Munsing, Muskegon, Ontonagon, Port Dolomite, Port Gypsum, Port Huron, Port Inland, Presque Isle (UP), Presque Isle, River Rouge, Saginaw, Sault Ste. Marie, St. Clair, St. Joseph, Stoneport, Traverse City, Trenton, and Wyandotte.
- The shipping industry serves Michigan’s farmers, miners, steel industry, manufacturers, power generation utilities, road maintenance agencies, and construction industry.
In USD (2010)
Source: The Economic Impacts of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway Navigation System.
Martin Associates (October, 2011).
Economic Contribution$167 million
Total Employment2,000 jobs
Personal income$174 million
Local Purchases$34 million
Total Taxes Paid$52 million
Marine Delivers for New York
Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Transportation
- Supports 2,000 jobs.
- More than 2 million tons of freight are shipped/received through New York's Great Lakes ports.
- Major cargoes include coal, limestone, grain, cement, salt, fuel oil, aluminum, machinery, and wind energy components.
- New York's Great Lakes ports are located in Buffalo, Ogdensburg, Oswego, Rochester, and Tonawanda.
- The shipping industry serves New York's agriculture and food products industry, power generation utilities, road maintenance agencies, manufacturers, and construction industry.
In USD (2010)
Source: The Economic Impacts of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway Navigation System.
Martin Associates (October, 2011).
Economic Contribution$439 million
Total Employment7,000 jobs
Personal income$594 million
Local Purchases$153 million
Total Taxes Paid$166 million
Marine Delivers for Illinois
Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Transportation
- Supports more than 7,000 jobs.
- More than 7 million tons of freight are shipped/received through Illinois' Great Lakes ports.
- Major cargoes include iron ore, coal, limestone, grain, sugar, soybeans, steel products, cement, petroleum products, and machinery.
- Illinois' Great Lakes ports are located at Chicago and Waukegan.
- The shipping industry serves Illinois' farmers, manufacturers, and construction industry.
In USD (2010)
Source: The Economic Impacts of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway Navigation System.
Martin Associates (October, 2011).
Economic Contribution$7.9 billion
Total Employment48,000 jobs
Personal income$3.8 billion
Local Purchases$1.1 billion
Total Taxes Paid$1 billion
Marine Delivers for Indiana
Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Transportation
- Supports over 48,000 jobs.
- More than 28 million tons of freight are shipped/received through Indiana's Great Lakes ports.
- Major cargoes include iron ore, coal, limestone, grain, fertilizers, steel products, petroleum products, and machinery.
- Indiana's Great Lakes ports are located at Buffington Harbor, Burns Harbor, Gary, and Indiana Harbor.
- The shipping industry serves Indiana's farmers, steel industry, manufacturers, power generation utilities, and construction industry.
In USD (2010)
Source: The Economic Impacts of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway Navigation System.
Martin Associates (October, 2011).
Economic Contribution$3.0 billion
Total Employment28,000 jobs
Personal income$2.1 billion
Local Purchases$773 million
Total Taxes Paid$580 million
Marine Delivers for Ohio
Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Transportation
- Supports more than 28,000 jobs.
- More than 40 million tons of freight are shipped/received through Ohio's Great Lakes ports.
- Major cargoes include iron ore, coal, limestone, grain, steel products, cement, salt, potash, gypsum, petroleum products, and machinery.
- Ohio's Great Lakes ports are located in Ashtabula, Cleveland, Conneault, Fairport Harbor, Huron, Lorain, Marblehead, Sandusky, and Toledo.
- The shipping industry serves Ohio's farmers, steel industry, manufacturers, power generation utilities, road maintenance agencies, and construction industry.
- Ohio is home to several shipyards and ship repair facilities.
In USD (2010)
Source: The Economic Impacts of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway Navigation System.
Martin Associates (October, 2011).
Economic Contribution$54 million
Total Employment854 jobs
Personal income$66 million
Local Purchases$19 million
Total Taxes Paid$18.5 million
Marine Delivers for Pennsylvania
Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Transportation
- Supports 900 jobs.
- More than 600,000 tons of freight are shipped/received through Pennsylvania's Great Lakes port.
- Major cargoes include limestone, biodiesel fuel, and paper products.
- Pennsylvania's Great Lakes port is located in Erie.
- The shipping industry serves Pennsylvania's farmers, manufacturers, and construction industry.
- Pennsylvania is home to a major Great Lakes shipyard and ship repair facility.
In USD (2010)
Source: The Economic Impacts of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway Navigation System.
Martin Associates (October, 2011).
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