The 6th annual Maritime Day will begin Saturday with a parade of union workers and port leaders showing their solidarity for the proposed $311 million deepening of the Delaware River.

The parade, complete with marching bands, antique cars and representatives from more than 30 unions, will have a festive air, but a serious message.

"The river is our life," said Joseph Balzano, executive director of the South Jersey Port Corp., which runs two commercial terminals in Camden. "As trucks have increased in size to accommodate additional cargo, so have ships, which means the success of this port is dependent upon deeper water."

Since the mid-1980s, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Delaware River Port Authority have pushed to deepen the shipping channel from Cape May to Camden from 40 to 45 feet.

The goal now is to begin the four-year dredging project in the fall, pending some final approvals.

Congress has appropriated $40 million for the project.

But there is an outstanding review by the General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of Congress. Pressure from environmentalists and legislators who oppose deepening the channel convinced the GAO to investigate. Because that process could take anywhere from a month to five years, it is unclear whether dredging would begin before the review is complete.

The hourlong parade will begin at 10 a.m. at 6th and Chestnut streets and end with the rally at the south end of Penn's Landing. It will kick off daylong entertainment and exhibits to educate the public about the importance of the maritime industry to the region.

The festival is free and open to the public. It will include ship tours, boat races and a 2 p.m. water rescue demonstration. Also, free samples of some of the port's leading edible products - bananas, pineapples and chocolate - will be available.

"Incorporating our advocacy efforts into the Maritime Day festival makes sense," said Dennis Rochford, president of the Maritime Exchange, which coordinates the event. "The public must be made aware that deepening the river is key to protecting over 60,000 local jobs and the billions of dollars in revenues and taxes that our industry provides to the regional economy."