Shipments of limestone on the Great Lakes totaled 3.4 million tons in September, the Lake Carriers’ Association (LCA) reports.
The September tonnage is a decrease of 2.6 percent versus the total from a year ago, LCA adds, and limestone cargos were below the month’s five-year average by 5.5 percent.
According to LCA, September loadings from U.S. quarries totaled 2.8 million tons – a decrease of 2.4 percent from September 2022. Shipments from Canadian quarries were down 3.5 percent to 651,520 tons.
Through nine months of the year, LCA says the Great Lakes limestone trade is down 6.6 percent to 19.7 million tons. Loadings from Michigan and Ohio quarries are at 15.9 million tons through September for a decrease of 4.6 percent. Shipments from quarries in Ontario, Canada, total 3.8 million tons for a decrease of 13.8 percent.
Shipments of limestone on the Great Lakes were up in August, totaling 4 million tons. The August total was up 4.4 percent from August 2022, with limestone cargos above the month’s five-year average by 3.7 percent.
