Is former railroad ferry Badger finished?

[PlymouthStationGuy]

In fact according to Ludington news They will start sailing a few weeks early
2/27 - Ludington, Mich. – Lake Michigan Carferry intends to start its 2013 sailing May 6 — two weeks earlier than its announced start of the 2013 season — due to continued demand to transport wind tower sections, manufactured by Broadwind Energy, in Manitowoc, Wisconsin and destined for wind generation plants in Michigan.

And it plans to do so even if the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has not yet ruled on its application for a new Clean Water Act discharge permit.

“LMC continues to work closely with the EPA on a plan, which will permanently eliminate ash discharge,” according to a statement from LMC. “We have been working under the legal counsel of the nationally renowned law firm of K.L Gates to assist us through this process.”

According to LMC, “Under federal laws, anyone who applies for a new permit to replace an expiring one like LMC has done is specifically allowed by law to keep operating under the expired permit until a final decision is made on the new permit. This is done frequently. Every year there are as many as 10,000 companies operating under expired permits like the Badger’s, while their permits are being considered.”

The EPA’s only comment remains, “The 2008 Vessel General Permit authorization for the discharge of coal-ash slurry from a coal-fired ferry expired on Dec. 19, 2012. EPA is reviewing Lake Michigan Carferry’s application for an individual Clean Water Act discharge permit for the SS Badger. EPA’s decision is anticipated in March 2013. The Agency will seek public comment before making a final decision.

“To date, EPA has received over 6,000 calls and letters about the operation of the S.S. Badger.”

“That both LMC and EPA continue to work together to find a solution that works to keep the carferry operating and satisfies the EPA environmental concerns — debatable, but (present) — is important,” Ludington Mayor John Henderson told the Ludington Daily News Tuesday morning. He said 200 American jobs are directly at stake in something being worked out and upwards of 700 jobs indirectly are at risk.

“The operation of the SS Badger to the economies of Ludington and Manitowoc is substantial. There are 125,000 passengers who cross there in a five-month season,” Henderson said.

The Badger is currently authorized to discharge under the EPA’s 2008 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Vessel General Permit issued in December 2008. One of these provisions authorized the discharge of coal-ash slurry from coal-fired propulsion systems until Dec. 19, 2012.

The Badger’s season was extended last year in order to ship wind turbine tower parts. According to LMC, “The Badger is well suited for transporting the huge wind tower sections, and the 80 sections being transported during the two week early season will save over 24,000 driving miles, 6,000 gallons of fuel, and eliminate traffic congestion.”

“The Badger transported more that 500 wind tower sections last year and this early season opportunity will allow us to improve on that number in 2013, Pat McCarthy, vice president of shore operations, said.

The Badger transports thousands of passengers and their vehicles each year, contributing significantly to the economies of both Michigan and Wisconsin. LMC no longer provides totals of vehicles transported.

“The Badger has a tremendous impact on our local tourism economy and the ability of the big ship to transport over-dimensional wind tower sections is an important benefit to our local ‘green” manufacturing industry,’” Manitowoc, Wisconsin Mayor Justin Nickels stated.

Ludington Daily News

[Super Chief]

Seems odd they would not report the number of cars carried? This would be a helpful figure for calculating carbon credits for all those gas engines not running for 4 hours and the miles they would have had to drive had they not taken the ferry. Seems that would be a crucial figure instead of passenger counts and windmill counts? Anyway were taking the boat this spring and my son's family will be coming over from Minnesota on it too. Sail on Badger!!! Unlike Carnival they don't have to dole out poop bags to the customers.

[w neal]

Look out Gratiot! Hope you can sleep.

[Saturnalia]

Great News!

The EPA has decided to allow the Badger to dump ash for 2 more years.

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is giving the nation's last operating coal-fired steamship two more years to stop dumping waste ash into Lake Michigan.

EPA previously ordered Lake Michigan Carferry to stop coal ash discharges from the S.S. Badger by last December. But the agency said Friday the two sides had reached a proposed agreement extending the deadline to the end of the 2014 sailing season.

Regional administrator Susan Hedman says it's the fastest and most certain way to halt the ash dumping. Carferry owner Bob Manglitz says the agreement will save the jobs of its 200 employees.

The 60-year-old ferryboat hauls cars and people across the lake between Ludington and Manitowoc, Wis., between May and October.

There will be a 30-day period for public comment on the proposed deal.

From: http://www.wzzm13.com/news/article/2494 ... sh-by-2015

Proposed, but not passed. Pretty good chance at this point though.

[Steve B]

Gee, wonder what will happen in another 2 years? How about this: "Manglitz states that while work on an ash-storage system is progressing, in the meantime he has requested an extension of the EPA permit."

These endless "temporary" permit extensions are a joke. Either allow it, or don't. He's had years and years to come up with a solution.

[12Bridge]

I can see both sides of this one, but the fact is, everyone knew there would be a ban at some point. The owners knew it was coming, and frankly should have been working on the solution a long time ago. Its not rocket science.

[Super Chief]

Badger +1 Carnival -4 Maybe the EPA can move on now and dig into Carnival's misgivings. There's got to be a lot of pooplution on their ships to monitor. EPA could send clean-up crews to disinfect the ships and ask Carnival how much trash was thrown into the ocean. No different. At the carferry peak 16 out on Lake Michigan were discharging coal ash and what did it do to the lake, not much. Now one is left and the EPA can't get it thru their heads that times have changed but their all to young to know what it was like in the 50's. Too many goverment heads making too much money for nonsense.

[Saturnalia]

Looks like the legal saga is coming to a close. LMC has agreed to find a way to stop dumping the ash, and store it on board.

10/11 - Ludington, Mich. – Federal District Court Judge Janet T. Neff has signed the consent decree needed to allow the SS Badger to continue to operate as it makes modifications, Lake Michigan Carferry announced late Thursday.

The consent decree was filed with the U.S. Department of Justice as an agreement between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Lake Michigan Carferry over coal ash discharged into Lake Michigan as part of the coal-fired ship's operations.

When the EPA began permitting what ships could discharge in 2008, it did not allow for coal ash. Thus began the legal battle to keep the carferry operating.

LMC studied its alternatives to using coal but found none feasible. Now the carferry and the EPA have an agreement to have the carferry create storage onboard for the ash created while crossing the lake. It will be disposed of once the ship is in port, but it will still take some time for the modifications to be made to the SS Badger.

In the meantime, the consent decree allows the Badger to operate, discharging a specific allowed amount of coal ash during the season, giving LMC a year to make the modifications.

“This consent decree offers the fastest and most certain path available to EPA to stop the discharge of coal ash from the Badger into Lake Michigan,” said EPA Region 5 Administrator Susan Hedman when the proposed decree was announced early this year. “The enforcement agreement reduces the discharge of coal ash more quickly and with greater oversight than would occur during the appeal of a decision to issue or deny a permit – a process that often takes several years.”

A comment period on an initial proposed decree drew more than 7,000 comments, split between those supporting it as written, and those wanting it toughened or not approved.

On Sept. 13, a revised consent decree with tougher potential penalties if LMC doesn’t comply was agreed to and sent to Neff for review.

The agreement has stronger reporting requirements, limits the mercury content in coal used by the SS Badger during the 2014 sailing season, and requires LMC to report information on the quantity of coal ash discharged by the SS Badger.

“This ensures that the Badger will be sailing long into the future,” Bob Manglitz, LMC CEO and president, said in September.

LMC, under terms of the consent decree, will have to store the coal ash on board by the start of the 2015 sailing season — or in some other way eliminate it. LMC has been ordered to file its plans and to reduce the discharge before that date.

LMC had already started taking action to reduce and ultimately eliminate the ash discharge prior to the start of the consent decree process by using coal that produces less ash, LMC states. It also has been working toward eliminating the ash discharge during the review process by starting the engineering and design work necessary for the installation of a ash retention system — a technology never before implemented on a steamship.

Manglitz previously had told the Daily News he wanted the consent decree in place before spending large amounts of money to comply with the storage provisions. The carferry will end this year's season Sunday, Oct. 13.

The Ludington Daily News

[AARR]

According to Crain's Detroit Business, May 18, 2015, the SS Badger is set to return to service after undergoing a makeover to meet terms of a deal with the US EPA. It will have a new ash retention system so it doesn't discharge ash into Lake Michigan.

[CAT345C]

May 15th was the first sailing of the 2015 season. Here she is creeping through the thick fog at the break wall to Ludington Harbor the evening of the 15th.
SS Badger Returns for 2015 by Mike Tabone, on Flickr