Abstract
Record flooding in Spring 2019 caused Oklahoma’s only inland navigable waterway to close. Closure disrupted the supply chains of agricultural and manufacturing industries. This research quantified the economic loss experienced by the region’s economy due to the disruption of waterway transportation services. We used a multi-regional input–output model to analyze impacts for the state’s congressional districts. The study found expected losses in employment of 63 to 750 jobs, $14.5 million to $165 million in output, and $5.7 million to $68.7 million in value-added to the economy, depending on the expected duration of closure and on assumptions regarding the sourcing of intermediate goods and services. Economic impacts were disproportionately experienced in different congressional districts and across economic sectors, depending on how tightly integrated those districts were to the manufacturing or agricultural sectors.
Highlights
Extreme weather events such as floods and earthquakes can cause disruptions of navigable waterways through port closures and can result in economic losses [1–3]
Port closures and channel disruption caused by natural events may take years to repair, triggering additional delays, instigating supply chain bottlenecks, and increasing the financial costs of doing business from demurrage and other port service payments [4,5]
This research differs from previous studies by focusing on the economic contribution of the OK-McClellan–Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System (MKARNS) and the flood’s impact on total industry output (TIO), the economic value the navigation system adds to the region, and employment at the state’s congressional district levels because of their role in representative fiscal policy and creating legislation for spending on infrastructure
Summary
Extreme weather events such as floods and earthquakes can cause disruptions of navigable waterways through port closures and can result in economic losses [1–3]. The US Army Corp of Engineers (USACE) built inland waterways, locks, and dams in the 1930s These infrastructures are aged well beyond their 50-year life expectancy. Understanding the economic impact of inland waterway disruption provides ex-ante information to private business, policymakers, and funding managers in their supply chain planning efforts. Understanding the economic impact of inland waterway disrup of 20 tion provides ex-ante information to private business, policymakers, and funding managers in their supply chain planning efforts. Port closures disrupted the transportation of goods goods for months, resulting in loss of industry output, jobs, and economic value. Pact Analysis for PLANning data and a multi-regional input–output model to determine (1) the economic contribution of the Oklahoma water transportation sector to the state’s economy, and (2) an analysis of the direct, indirect, and induced economic impacts of the system’s closure
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