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ra A Preview National Waterways Conference & Exhibition Set For September 18-20 In Houston, Texas The National Waterways Conference's 1991 Annual Meeting and Waterways Exposition, sched- uled on September 18-20 at the Doubletree Hotel on Post Oak Bou- levard in Houston, is expected to attract more than 400 water trans- portation leaders from all parts of the nation. For the inland waterways indus- try, NWC's prestigious three-day annual meeting is one of the high- lights of the year. The organization last met in Houston in 1983. Planning for this year's conven- tion began a year ago at the 1990 annual meeting when conference chairman Berdon Lawrence ap- pointed Dennis L. Kirwin, vice president and general manager of Midland Marine Corp., as general arrangements chairman. Also involved in the initial plan- ning session was J.D. (Johnnie) Laman, manager of marine and in- ternational operations for DOW USA, who is the National Water- ways Conference's vice chairman. "We will be examining some of the most timely and troubling is- sues confronting our industry to- day," said Mr. Lawrence, who is president of Hollywood Marine, Inc., Houston, Texas. On the agenda will be such issues as addressing navi- gation infrastructure needs, deter- mining investment priorities, head- ing off higher user taxes, and sur- viving environmental challenges. Specifically, the NWC Annual Meeting will focus on pending projects such as the Sargent Beach erosion problem on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, the pro- posed use of Inland Waterways Trust Fund revenues to fund rehabilita- The Port of Houston. In the background, skyscrap- ers of the nation's fourth largest city, site of the National Waterway's Conference's 1991 Annual Meeting & Exhibition. tion projects, whether the industry is nearing the "saturation point" for waterway user taxes, and if a broad- scale reorganization of the Army Corps of Engineers is warranted. Six discussion programs and two luncheons with widely known speak- ers are planned. In addition, there will be a number of special reports, breakfast sessions and business meetings. Waterways exhibits will be set up in a ballroom adjacent to those where the general sessions will take place. Coffee breaks and pre-luncheon re- ceptions will be held in the exhibit area. For those who have exhibited at prior NWC conventions, a special discount is being offered. NWC members are also eligible. The convention will kick off at 2 p.m., September 18, when the Wa- terways Exposition will open. There will also be committee meetings, registration and early arrivals' re- ception. It will be held in an open- air area surrounding the hotel pool. Chairman Lawrence will gavel the first general session to order the next morning. In his annual report, NWC presi- dent Harry N. Cook will review the imposition of almost a dozen water- way user fees, charges and taxes during the last decade. And, mak- ing use of a slide presentation, he will trace the role of waterway tolls in influencing a number of histori- cal events. Following will be two morning and two afternoon discussion ses- sions, each runningjust over an hour. The opening luncheon will take place at noon, with Mr. Lawrence pre- siding. On Thursday evening, NWC members and guests will travel to the Houston City Dock, Pier 22, to board the Colonel, a paddlewheeler based in Galveston, for dinner cruise on the Houston Ship Channel. When the boat reaches San Jacinto State Park, they will disembark for the trip back to their hotel. Commissioned by the Moody Foundation of Galveston, the Colo- nel, a 152-foot, 800-passenger paddlewheeler, is a Victorian-style riverboat, built by Moss Point Ma- rine, Inc., Escatawpa, Miss., in 1985 at a cost of $3 million. She is named in memory of Col. W.L. Moody Sr., a Galveston business leader who died in 1920. Her crew is attired in au- thentic recreations of U.S. Navy uniforms of the 1860s. On Friday morning, September 20, Maj. Gen. Arthur E. Williams, the Army Corps of Engineers' re- cently named Civil Works Director, will bring attendees up to date on the agency's civil works program, emphasizing ongoing navigation construction and future O&M plans. Two morning discussion pro- grams and the closing luncheon will follow. NWC vice chairman Laman will preside at the luncheon. For spouses of those attending the NWC meeting, a special tour and luncheon has been arranged. At least three other organizations plan meetings at the same hotel during the course of the NWC con- vention. These include the Arkan- sas Waterways Commission, Inland Rivers Ports & Terminals, Inc., and U.S. Section of the Permanent In- ternational Association of Naviga- tion Congresses (PIANC). NWC's headquarters, the Doubletree Hotel, is a modern 448- room hotel located in the famous Galleria area of Houston. For registration information, de- tails on special hotel and airfare rates, or an exhibitor's kit, contact: NWC, 1130 Seventeenth Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20036; telephone: (202) 296-4415; or fax: (202) 835- 3861. 23
