Port of L.A. wins $400-million grant to electrify operations

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded the Port of Los Angeles more than $400 million to support its transition to electric cargo-moving equipment — a major boost to efforts aimed at curbing pollution at America’s busiest container port.

The so-called Clean Ports grant, announced Tuesday, is part of a larger $3-billion initiative to deploy zero-emission equipment at the nation’s ports, which are significant sources of lung-searing smog and greenhouse gas emissions.

The Port of Los Angeles received the largest single award, securing $411 million in federal funding. The port and its private partners have committed an additional $236 million in matching funds for zero-emission initiatives.

“This transformative investment will be a tremendous boost to our efforts to meet our ambitious zero-emission goals, improve regional air quality and combat climate change while accelerating the port industry’s transition to zero emissions across the country,” said Gene Seroka, executive director at the Port of Los Angeles.

The landmark grant, funded through the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, will significantly accelerate the port’s efforts to replace diesel-powered equipment with all-electric alternatives.

The funding is expected to finance the purchase of more than 400 pieces of cargo-moving equipment, such as yard tractors and forklifts. The grant also aims to increase the number of battery-electric trucks and expand the port’s charging infrastructure.

These investments will help the port avoid burning 3.5 million gallons of diesel fuel each year, according to port officials. It will reduce smog-forming emissions by 55 tons and planet-warming carbon emissions by 41,500 tons per year.

“Our ports are the backbone of our economy — critical hubs that support our supply chain, drive commerce, create jobs and connect us all,” said EPA Administrator Michael Regan, who visited the port in March. “But we cannot overlook the challenges faced by the communities that live and work near these ports. Too often these communities face serious air quality challenges due to diesel pollution from trucks, ships and other port machinery.”

Six other California ports were also awarded federal funding: Oakland, Oxnard, San Diego, San Francisco, Stockton and Redwood City. The Port of Long Beach however, which operates adjacent to the Port of Los Angeles and is the second-busiest port in the nation, was notably absent from the list of announced grant recipients.

The Port of Los Angeles — nicknamed America’s Port — serves as a vital gateway between Asia and the United States. From furniture to electronics, roughly $300 billion worth of goods pass through the sprawling seaport every year. These operations provide tens of thousands of jobs to dockworkers, truck drivers and other laborers who help move this cargo.

But the port’s activity is also one of the region’s largest fixed sources of smog-forming emissions. Although the port has drastically slashed diesel exhaust and nitrogen oxides through cleaner fuels and engines in the past two decades, it is now faced with its stiffest challenge to date: adopting zero-emission technology.

The new funding will help push it toward its ambitious goal of having all terminal equipment be zero-emission by 2030. The port has more than 2,100 pieces of cargo-moving equipment — about 72% of which are diesel-powered while 9% are electric.

The Clean Ports funding could phase out more than a quarter of the diesel equipment. It will assist the port tenants in purchasing 337 yard tractors that ferry containers across the harbor; 56 top handlers that load and stack cargo; and 24 forklifts.

The trucks, cargo ships and trains that transport these goods continue to generate pollution and planet warming emissions, however.

More than 22,000 trucks are registered to serve the Port of Los Angeles. Ninety percent are diesel-powered. Fewer than 2% are zero-emission, and they include 332 electric trucks and 51 hydrogen fuel cell trucks.

The EPA grant will fund the financial incentives for trucking companies and operators to purchase another 250 electric cargo trucks. It is also expected to cover the installation of 300 electric chargers, two solar arrays and 10 battery storage systems.

“The San Pedro Bay communities have struggled with the impacts of cargo-goods-related emissions for far too long, so we congratulate the Port of Los Angeles on its substantive EPA Clean Ports Grant award to make meaningful progress towards the stated zero-emissions goal,” said Ed Avol, who sits on the board of the Harbor Community Benefit Foundation, an organization working to mitigate pollution at the ports. “The Harbor Community Benefit Foundation looks forward to working with the Port to achieve that goal without delay.”

In July, the EPA announced another historic $500-million federal grant to the South Coast Air Quality Management District, which plans to encourage the adoption of zero-emission cargo trucks, delivery vehicles and some locomotives.

The Port of Los Angeles partnered with Yusen Terminals LLC, Everport Terminal Services, TraPac, Fenix Marine Services, APM Terminals and the Harbor Community Benefit Foundation for the grant application.

The port’s bid was supported by elected officials, public agencies, business groups, environmental justice advocates, community groups and labor organizations.

Beyond the environmental benefits, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union emphasized that the grant funding will be spent on human-operated equipment that won’t automate operations and eliminate jobs. This includes $50 million toward community benefits, including training for residents who are interested in learning how to operate and repair this new equipment.

“The men and women of the ILWU are thrilled to learn of this over $400 million investment, by the U.S. EPA, in the environmental and economic well-being of our members and local community,” said Gary Herrera, president of ILWU Local 13. “Human-operated, zero-emission cargo handling equipment is the gold standard for maritime port operations not only because it protects good jobs while cleaning the air, but is also the most efficient and cost-effective in terms of port operations, while additionally providing the necessary safeguards against cyber threats to our national security.”