Germany’s waterways are unsung, but essential

Roughly a third of Germany’s coal, crude oil and natural gas—as well as a big chunk of its grains and chemicals—travel along inland waterways of one type or another. Traffic on the Rhine, which twists from the Swiss Alps to the North Sea, accounts for about 80% of that. Hence the continuing concern about the sizzling conditions which, over several weeks, have threatened to bring shipping on the river to a halt. The water level near Kaub, a town close to the Rhine’s shallowest section, has lately hovered at only about 30cm (see chart). It is going to take a lot of rain, falling in the right places, to push that up very much. To decrease their draughts, barges are carrying only 15-25% of their usual loads. Germany’s most important waterway could yet shut.