News

The Propeller Clubs of Northern California and of Los Angeles and Long Beach convened a joint forum to discuss the impact of U.S. railroads on California ports.

On September 14th, maritime stakeholders from Northern and Southern California attended the virtual event where they heard the following reports:

Jessica Alvarenga, government affairs director Pacific Merchant Shipping Association (PMSA), reported that average rail dwell time for containers moving on rail destined for Midwest destinations from the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach averaged ...

Paul Snell, CEO British – American Shipping, warned that the recent consolidation of ocean carriers into now 17 carriers into a smaller number of alliances has been accompanied by downsizing and automation in which carriers “mimic each other” in emphasizing imports over exports and with the unintended effect of “devaluing” U.S exporters.

This consolidation is causing international trade to favor imports over exports to the United States and is creating long-term obstacles for U.S. exporters.

However, Snell emphasized that challenges faced by ...

In an interview with AJOT, Elaine Forbes, executive director, Port of San Francisco said the Port could be facing up to an $80 million deficit by the end of 2021. She is hopeful about an economic rebound in 2022 and that $250 million designated by the State of California for ports’ recovery might be partially utilized to reduce Port losses suffered during the pandemic.

Earlier this month, Forbes told the San Francisco Board of Supervisors: “The Port is in a crisis. ...

Retired Brigadier General Joseph Schroedel urged attendees at the “Strategies for Storms, Flooding and Sea Level Defense Investments” conference to support the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers mission to upgrade the nation’s flood control and waterways infrastructure. Schroedel also urged support for budgetary increases in the next Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) which funds USACE projects.

The WRDA passed in 2020 included key provisions to invest in U.S. ports, harbors and inland waterways; build more resilient communities so that  the U.S. ...

PMSA’s Jacob Warns Oakland A’s Howard Terminal Ballpark and Condos Pose “Long-Term Threat” to Port of Oakland Maritime Operations

Mike Jacob, vice president and general counsel, Pacific Merchant Shipping Association (PMSA), called the recently-released City of Oakland draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) analyzing the Oakland A’s proposed ballpark and condominium complex at the Port of Oakland’s Howard Terminal “inadequate.”

Jacob said the report was vague in its analysis of the complex’s impact on harbor trucking, air quality and container rail movements.

Jacob warned ...