WASHINGTON – Today, the recently renamed Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (GLS or Corporation) announced that a new corporate seal has been approved to replace the former Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLSDC) seal.

The SLSDC was renamed the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation by Congress as part of the FY 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act (P.L. 116-260), signed into law on December 27, 2020.  This name change was led by U.S. Representative Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) to acknowledge the Corporation’s long-standing contributions and importance to the Great Lakes region and its economy.

GLS Deputy Administrator Craig H. Middlebrook said, “The new GLS corporate seal pays homage to the former SLSDC seal while depicting the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River.  Great Lakes Seaway System stakeholders will quickly recognize and hopefully appreciate the new design as it becomes prevalent on the Seaway’s websites, publications, signage, and even the new GLS tugboats.”

The Seaway System directly serves the Great Lakes region, which accounts for one-quarter of the U.S. gross domestic product and one-half of North America’s manufacturing and services industries and is home to nearly one-quarter of the continent’s population.  The Great Lakes region is the world’s third largest economy with annual economic output of $6 trillion.

Maritime commerce on the Great Lakes Seaway System annually sustains nearly 238,000 U.S. and Canadian jobs, $35 billion in economic activity, $14 billion in personal income, and $7 billion in federal, state/provincial, and local taxes.  Over its 62-year history, nearly 3 billion metric tons of cargo valued at over $450 billion have transited the St. Lawrence Seaway.