The Los Angeles Harbour Commission has certified the final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the proposed China Shipping Berth 97-109 container terminal and has approved the project. The project will include a tenant lease to year 2045, will provide thousands of future jobs and will substantially reduce air emissions at the terminal through unprecedented mitigation measures.

Los Angeles China Shipping terminal expansion approved

China Shipping’s expanded terminal will promote more than 8,400 direct permanent and indirect jobs and capacity to 1.5m teu. The facility will be expanded from 72 to 142 acres of backland with 2,500 feet (762 m) of berths equipped with 10 post-Panamax gantry cranes.

The around 60 environmental measures being applied to the terminal construction and operations as part of the EIR and new lease agreement, include the use of shore-side alternative maritime power (AMP) by all vessels calling at the terminal by 2011. In 2004, China Shipping became the first container ship line in the world to plug ships into shore-side electric power while at berth at the Port of Los Angeles. The measure eliminates the release of roughly one ton of ship emissions every 24 hours a ship is at berth.

Other environmental measures include: 100% compliance with the Port’s Vessel Speed Reduction Program (VSRP) and the use of low-sulphur fuel for ships transiting within 40 nautical miles of the Port; the use of alternative fuelled yard tractors; the use of electric RTGs; the use of diesel particulate filters on lower-emission switcher locomotives, and the use of USEPA 2007 compliant container drayage trucks by 2012 (in line with the Port’s Clean Truck Programme) and 100% use of LNG-powered trucks by 2018

Phase two and phase three of the project are estimated to cost US$106,300,000. The first phase cost US$100,200,000 for terminal assets is already in place.