Industrial Supplies Imported And Exported Through Los Angeles Port - By: Matthew Paolini

The sprawling Port of Los Angeles is located on San Pedro Bay in Los Angeles, CA, about 20 miles away from the downtown area. Also called the Los Angeles Harbor, the port covers 7,500 acres of both land and waterfront property. It is near to the Port of Long Beach, and is the most busy port in the U.S., with more than 16,000 employees.

The port is an independent, self-sufficient department of the city of Los Angeles. It is governed by a five-member board of Harbor Commissioners that are appointed by the Los Angeles mayor and approved by the City Council, and is administered by an executive director.

It is also the biggest cruise ship loading point on the West Coast and boasts three berths for ships, which move more than 1 million passengers on a yearly basis. The cruise center is posited to be the country's most secure cruise location. It features a security patrolled long-term parking lot with over 2,500 spaces. When ships are in dock, shuttles move passengers and their belongings between the parking lot and the cruise ship.

Regrettably, with the huge volume of business that the port does, air pollution is a big problem. Large container ships burning highly polluting bunker fuel idle at the docks because they have no ability to utilize shore-generated electricity. Diesel trailer trucks and locomotives idle while they sit and wait to be loaded and unloaded. An environmental regulatory agency did a study that found that air pollution from the port causes 2,000 cases of cancer per million people. The more than 45 tons of nitrogen oxides generated daily by port vessels nearly matches the amount from the 350 biggest factories and refineries in the region. That number is expected to rise 70 percent by 2022.

Coping with these environmental considerations is a daily test for the port. Attempts have been made to improve the pollution problem through a variety of strategies that include cleaner-burning vehicles and more efficient cargo-handling.

In addition, a 2.8 million dollar Clean Air Program initiative was initiated by the board of Harbor Commissioners in 2002, aimed at reducing polluting emissions from vessels and cargo-handling equipment. To hasten the implementation of emission reductions through the use of new, cleaner-burning equipment, 52 million dollars has been allocated through 2008.

About the Author

Matt Paolini is an industrial industry writer for CityBook.com, the family-safe Los Angeles Yellow Pages, which carries an extensive directory on Los Angeles exporters.

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