I just ran across this article that says the water level in the Mississippi River in one stretch is expected to drop low enough to potentially become impassable to barge traffic within a couple weeks. A historic drought and the diversion of water from the Missouri River instead of flowing into the Mississippi River are given as the reasons for this extreme low level of water. Apparently, barges have already been running with lighter loads through that stretch.

Sounds very bad. I'm just wondering if there's anyone with more knowledge about the situation who might have a less dire understanding of the situation. Wildman, you out there? I'm wondering if this situation really means that all barge traffic could be stopped at that chokepoint, or are we actually only talking about a particularly shallow lane in that stretch of the river? Is this a situation that would persist or would the water hit "bottom" and then gradually start rising again in a short time on its own? Anyway, just trying to get a better picture of the situation and figure out how much is hype.

I wonder how much grain is transported through that area during the winter months along the Mississippi and what sort of impact on grain prices might occur if barge traffic were severely impacted? Or maybe the impact is more for grain exported abroad and not so much on domestic supplies? Of course, there are plenty of things besides grains that are transported on the Mississippi, but agricultural products have been hit so hard by the drought lately, so that's on my mind.