We don't need droughts in the face of a global food shortage. Overland transport out of Ukraine is not realistic. Trains are not known to be safe. Trucks would have to be guaranteed safe passage. This Russian nightmare never ends. It's ability to be aggressive is about Russian politics. It is a very dangerous dynamic in that country. Russia must be contained going forward.
August 1, 2022
Amsterdam - Low water levels in the Rhine (click here) are worsening capacity shortages at Dutch river barges, a spokeswoman for the industry said on Monday.
Demand for the largest barges, in the class of 135 meters, has surged as German users seek to import more coal, said Maira van Helvoirt of Netherlands Royal Inland Shipping (KBN).
However, due to low water levels on the Rhine, many can only carry half their normal loads or less....
This occurred in 2018 on the Rhine.
By Christopher F. Schuetze
Kaub, Germany - Just after sunrise, (click here) Capt. Frank Sep turned to his ship’s radio for the defining news of his day: the water level in Kaub, the shallowest part of the middle section of the Rhine, Germany’s most important shipping route.
The news was bad, as it so often is these days.
One of the longest dry spells on record has left parts of the Rhine at record-low levels for months, forcing freighters to reduce their cargo or stop plying the river altogether....
