Congresswoman Kathy Castor secured nearly $6 million today for improvements to the Port of Tampa and Port Manatee. The money will bolster our region’s vibrant shipping industry, which supports hundreds of jobs in the Tampa Bay area.

“The Port of Tampa is among the most vital economic engines in our community,” Castor said. “The Tampa Port generates an $8 billion economic impact to our region each year. Expanding and dredging our ports means we will improve shipping and commerce and give a boost to our essential maritime industry. We must relieve congestion in the harbor.”

With President Obama’s support, Castor secured $5.3 million for dredging 70 miles of federal channels in Tampa Harbor, and an additional $472,000 for planning, engineering and design work for widening a portion of the main Tampa federal channel, including creating a passing lane for ships through the Port. The important and long-awaited passing lane will relieve severe congestion throughout the harbor, and periodic dredging keeps the channels open to ship traffic and goods coming in and out of the Tampa Port. The channel handles traffic in and out of Tampa Bay for the Ports of Tampa, Manatee and St. Petersburg.

Castor also delivered $100,000 to Manatee Harbor to allow the Army Corps of Engineers to determine whether federal maintenance is needed.

The funding was included in the FY 2010 Energy and Water Appropriations Act, which passed the House today.

Earlier this year, Castor secured $4.2 million for dredging and maintenance at the Port of Tampa and an additional $478,000 for widening the channel.

Castor also was pleased to announce this summer that four Tampa ship repair services received a total of $10 million through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. All of the ship repair services are dedicated to creating and preserving jobs. In addition, Castor announced in August that through the Recovery Act, the Tampa Port is receiving $2.2 million to reconstruct a pier and replace a bulkhead. The collapse of the bulkhead could lead to a complete shutdown of the Port, which would be disastrous considering this is where all the fuel for west-central Florida is unloaded. The money for the fix means the Port will retain nearly 300 jobs.