Europe's most important trade river dries upWhile the eyes of the world remain fixed on geopolitically charged blockades in the Strait of Hormuz...
Published by Water Network Research, Official research team of The Water Network
Europe's most important trade river dries up
While the eyes of the world remain fixed on geopolitically charged blockades in the Strait of Hormuz, a bottleneck has been choking another of the globe's critical trade routes.
The Rhine River, once called the "highway of kings" due to its extraordinary geography that winds through six of Europe's wealthiest nations, is drying up.
In August, amid Europe's record-breaking heatwaves and drought, the water levels on the Rhine plunged so low the southern section of the river shut to boat traffic.
Thousands of tons of cargo were stranded. Freight businesses, many of them small, family-run operations, lost thousands of dollars a day.
"My fear is that this will become more frequent," said Torsten Stuntz, the captain and owner of the Stella Maris, a cargo ship moored just outside the south-western German city of Mainz.
A man stands in the bridge of a ship, and looks at the camera with his arms folded and a neutral expression on his face.
Captain Torsten Stuntz has worked on the Rhine River for almost 40 years. (ABC News: Daniel Pannett)
Captain Stuntz has worked on the Rhine for almost 40 years and relies on steady summer trade to support himself and two deckhands.
He is now growing increasingly concerned about the viability of operating a ship on the inland artery.
"The problem of water levels is becoming more common," he said. "You could rely on the water from the upper Rhine over the summer months flowing down but this [water level] has just been getting less recently.
"It is extremely low this summer. We had something similar before in 2018. But it wasn't quite as low as it is now."
While the southern part of the Rhine has reopened, the water level is hovering at a dangerously low 25 centimetres.
To avoid hitting the riverbed, Captain Stuntz has had to reduce the amount of cargo he carries on board.
He usually transports crushed gravel, which is used in cement across Europe. To safely move it in the shallow water, he has had to slash the amount on his ship by more than 80 per cent — a hefty blow to his profit margins.
Other ships have also been forced to drastically scale back operations, leaving more than three-quarters of Europe's inland cargo stranded at docks along the Rhine.
The German government has amended regulations to allow trucks to move the stranded freight by road, but while ships can move up to 3,000 metric tonnes of cargo at a time, even large trucks can take only around 25 tonnes.
They also have more impact on the environment.
"I believe that most people simply have no overview of what inland shipping really does and how important and sustainable it is," Captain Stuntz told the ABC, adding prolonged low water levels will have a crushing economic impact in Europe.
While the eyes of the world remain fixed on geopolitically charged blockades in the Strait of Hormuz, a bottleneck has been choking another of the globe's critical trade routes.
The Rhine River, once called the "highway of kings" due to its extraordinary geography that winds through six of Europe's wealthiest nations, is drying up.
In August, amid Europe's record-breaking heatwaves and drought, the water levels on the Rhine plunged so low the southern section of the river shut to boat traffic.
Thousands of tons of cargo were stranded. Freight businesses, many of them small, family-run operations, lost thousands of dollars a day.
"My fear is that this will become more frequent," said Torsten Stuntz, the captain and owner of the Stella Maris, a cargo ship moored just outside the south-western German city of Mainz.
A man stands in the bridge of a ship, and looks at the camera with his arms folded and a neutral expression on his face.
Captain Torsten Stuntz has worked on the Rhine River for almost 40 years. (ABC News: Daniel Pannett)
Captain Stuntz has worked on the Rhine for almost 40 years and relies on steady summer trade to support himself and two deckhands.
He is now growing increasingly concerned about the viability of operating a ship on the inland artery.
"The problem of water levels is becoming more common," he said. "You could rely on the water from the upper Rhine over the summer months flowing down but this [water level] has just been getting less recently.
"It is extremely low this summer. We had something similar before in 2018. But it wasn't quite as low as it is now."
While the southern part of the Rhine has reopened, the water level is hovering at a dangerously low 25 centimetres.
To avoid hitting the riverbed, Captain Stuntz has had to reduce the amount of cargo he carries on board.
He usually transports crushed gravel, which is used in cement across Europe. To safely move it in the shallow water, he has had to slash the amount on his ship by more than 80 per cent — a hefty blow to his profit margins.
Other ships have also been forced to drastically scale back operations, leaving more than three-quarters of Europe's inland cargo stranded at docks along the Rhine.
The German government has amended regulations to allow trucks to move the stranded freight by road, but while ships can move up to 3,000 metric tonnes of cargo at a time, even large trucks can take only around 25 tonnes.
They also have more impact on the environment.
"I believe that most people simply have no overview of what inland shipping really does and how important and sustainable it is," Captain Stuntz told the ABC, adding prolonged low water levels will have a crushing economic impact in Europe.
Tags
- Technology
- GIS & Remote Sensing Technology
- IT
- Information Services
- Low Temperature Distillation
- water treatment operator