Georgia Ports Authority was the sponsor at the August Chamber Breakfast. Speaking was Robert Morris, whose job with the Authority is to oversee the marketing, communications and government relations as the  Director of External Affairs. Morris presented a look back over the fifty years that the Bainbridge Port has been in existence. 

The Bainbridge Port was dedicated on June 26, 1958, one year after the opening of Woodruff Damn. Morris stated that there was only one shed when the Port opened and much has changed since then. Morris stated, "Despite the lack of available water in the river system for barge traffic in recent years, the Port of Bainbridge does continue to grow." 

He reported that the Bainbridge Port moved more than 60,000 tons of cargo for the last fiscal year. He said that this was accomplished because the Ga. Port Authority had 're-tooled' the Bainbridge Port to remain a significant distribution area for agricultural products and also serves as a multi modal distribution center and specializes in handling bulk cargo. 

   Bainbridge Port Terminal Manager Kenneth Slater, Bill Dawson from the Brunswick Facilities, Robert Morris, Dr. Suzi Bonifay Chamber Chairman and Charles Tyson Chamber Interim, President

According to Morris the ports that the Georgia Ports Authority handles has a large economic impact throughout the state. He attributed the success of the Authority to being flexible with the changing world market, the export market has picked up as the import market has slowed. Using numbers from a study by the Un. of Georgia, Morris stated that there are close to 300,000 full and part-time Authority employees tied to the port system and 1.2 billion dollars in local taxes.

Showing a graph of the past 10 years for tonnage that has moved through the Bainbridge Port, Morris stated that it is varied, however, the last two years, "have shown a tremendous resurgence."

Today, according to Morris, the Bainbridge Port features 2 docks and 93,000 square feet of storage and space along with the CSX rail. He also stated that it is important to work with Florida for a solution to reopen the harbor but until then the Bainbridge Port has been successful with the re-tooling.

Morris closed his presentation with an image of barge traffic coming up the river. He stated that barge transport is one of the most environmentally friendly, uses less fuel and there are fewer air emissions. We are looking forward to the day when this picture can return to Port Bainbridge."