World Trade - March 2009 - (Page 26) WEST COAST PORTS have sprouted in the region. Last year, Frito-Lay installed a giant solar system at its Modesto plant, while Fiscalini Farmstead Cheese of Modesto and the Joseph Gallo Farms cheese plant in Atwater generate electricity from methane extracted from their cows’ manure. In the San Francisco bay area, the Port of Oakland is in the midst of a project to modernize terminals. Specifically, the port broke ground last summer on the Berths 30-33 Yard and Gate Redevelopment project, a capital improvement effort aimed at improving operational efficiencies and facilities at the Oakland TraPac Terminal. Acreage will be expanded from 35 to 65 acres, while other upgrades, such as new entrance and exit gates, parking, longshore facilities, and lighting, will also be included in the project. Across the bay, the Port of San Francisco is hoping a project to develop a high-speed rail line to connect San Francisco and other major cities across the state will pay off for the port. In particular, the port is hoping that the project will include work on expanding rail tunnels to accommodate freight trains. If so, the port could move forward on an idea to import and possibly export cars through the Port of San Francisco. Car shipments would help boost revenue at the port, which currently uses Pier 80 to import bulk commodities like construction materials. In Southern California, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have launched one of the most ambitious green programs of any port in the nation. At the center of the Clean Air Action Plan is a move to get ‘dirty’ trucks off the roads, which started in October with a ban on 1988 and older trucks. Other trucks that don’t meet 2007 air pollution standards began paying a $35 per TEU fee in February. The National Resources Defense Council said the step in October to remove about 2,000 of the twenty-year and older trucks reduced diesel particulates emissions by an estimated 50 percent. “These are the dirtiest ports in the nation, with the worst air pollution, but if this program survives its legal challenges, the changes these ports are making now could be adopted throughout the country,” said David Pettit, senior attorney for the resources council, in a report by the Los Angeles Times. At the same time, the ports of LA/LB are introducing electric trucks and other yard equipment that run on cleaner burning fuels. And recently, the world’s first electric-diesel hybrid tugboat was delivered to the ports. Within three years, most ships calling the port complex will be able to plug into an electrical grid while at berth and use shore power instead of running their diesel engines. WT For reprints of this article, please contact Cindy Williams at williamsc@bnpmedia.com or 610-436-4220 ext. 8516. Port of Long Beach The Port of Long Beach and neighboring Los Angeles are introducing hybrid trucks and yard equipment as part of their effort to clean up the air in San Pedro Harbor. said Jon Maring, senior director of power generation for PG&E, in an interview. “The port’s ability to handle cargo this large was critical in our efforts to move this project forward in a timely way.” The chairman of the Sacramento-Yolo Port Commission added, “This shipment is another example of the port’s increasingly important role in enabling the implementation of new and more environmentally friendly energy technologies throughout Northern California.” The shipment in February was the first of four shipments that the port will handle for the Maxwell facility this year. Meanwhile, the Port of Stockton has emerged as one of the largest receivers of wind turbines in the world. The port is close to San Francisco and Sacramento, yet has an abundance of relatively inexpensive land, and is at the heart of much activity related to the renewables market. The sun and wind potential in Stockton is among some of the best in the country and with 2,000 acres available, the port is already home to biodiesel and ethanol plants. Furthermore, the city of Stockton and the port have worked in partnership to focus resources on developing green business. For example, Stockton has begun working with local educational institutions, including high schools, community colleges, and four-year universities, to educate the workforce for the booming renewable energy industry. Indeed, a recent article in The Modesto Bee discussed just how important the renewables industry is to the port and the region as a whole. Cheryl Brown, a labor specialist with the University of California at Berkeley Labor Center, told the paper, “You have land, a waiting work force and work force development opportunities,” she said. “You’re on major transportation lines and have a port (in Stockton). And, you’re close to the Bay Area, where much of the innovation is happening.” Over the past few years a number of green projects MARCH 2009 26 WORLD TRADE
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