AAPA recently announced its Board of Directors and new Chairman of the Board Mario Cordero, executive director of  the Port of Long Beach, Calif. Chairman Cordero will serve a two-year term and replaces Gary G. Nelson, executive director of the Port of Grays Harbor, Wash. The change in leadership took place September 21 during the Annual Convention. AAPA wishes to express appreciation for Mr. Nelson’s service over the past year.

AAPA membership also voted during the convention to adopt revised and updated bylaws, which allowed the Association to move forward with structural changes to its governance policies and Board of Directors. As part of the overhaul of its governance policies, AAPA’s membership voted to extend board member terms from one year to two years, reduce the Board of Directors to 11 representatives, sunset the Executive Committee and establish a new Membership and Sponsorship Growth Advisory Board. The association’s membership also agreed to limit board positions to port CEOs, or their equivalent, for each of its seven geographic regions.

In addition, AAPA membership approved two new membership categories, Academia and Supply Chain Partners (SCPs), and renamed the Sustaining membership category to Industry Solution Providers (ISPs). 

The Port of Everett’s Chief of Business and Economic Development Terrie Battuello was honored by Puget Sound Business Journal with the 2020 Community Champion Award during the publication’s second annual Commercial Real Estate Leadership awards ceremony. At the port, Battuello manages the business and economic development program, and a portfolio of 3,300 acres of property and 45+ commercial leases.

As wildfires continue to impact California, officials from the Port of Los Angeles, Los Angeles Port Police and Logistics Victory Los Angeles (LoVLA) expressed their gratitude to the CMA CGM Group for sending shipping containers and firefighting supplies to the Los Angeles Fire Department, as well as to the counties of Fresno and Madera.

Federal Maritme Commissioner Carl W. Bentzel, and his Counsel John Young, visited the Port of Wilmington as part of a South Atlantic port tour to better understand the unique operations, markets and management structures of ports in the region. The visits also focused on how each port managed chassis use in marine container movements, and reviewed implementation of intermodal railroad connections.

Register today to attend the 2020 Energy & Environment Seminar & Expo, a week-long virtual event, October 26-30, for professionals who plan, monitor and administer energy and environment activities, as well as marketing communications relating to the projects. Attendees will be able to access pre-recorded content, participate in live Q&A sessions with presenters, exchange private messages with colleagues through an event app and meet with exhibitors in virtual, informal small groups. View the latest agenda online.

Sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities are still available. Contact Ed O'Connell for more information. 

The Maryland Port Administration and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced an agreement to begin a study of improvements at the Seagirt Marine Terminal within the Port of Baltimore. Under a Feasibility Cost-Sharing Agreement, the two partners will evenly split the cost of the estimated $3 million study.

A container shipping terminal at the Port of Long Beach is now using new, zero-emissions cargo-handling tractors to test the readiness of the equipment to handle the workload at a busy seaport. The project is part of a $9.7 million grant awarded by the California Energy Commission, which involves the design or creation of 21 new or converted electric cargo handling vehicles.

The Port of Bellingham has been awarded a $6.85 million U.S. Department of Transportation Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP) Grant to upgrade the Bellingham Shipping Terminal, increase trade and commerce, and restore working waterfront jobs. The Port of Brownsville is reclaiming its status as a major exporter of agricultural products after receiving a $14.5 million PIDP grant to improve efficiency and safety of its grain storage and loading facilities. The Port of Palm Beach has been awarded a $13.2 million PIDP grant  to expand its intermodal rail freight facility, which will more than double the port’s intermodal rail capacity from 44,000 TEUs per year to 95,000 TEUs per year.

The theme of this issue is Stronger Together. Just as ports are finding new strengths during this unprecedented time, so are vendors, partners and business associates. And so is AAPA. Add all of those strengths and innovative ideas together, and you come up with an industry that is learning to thrive in the face of this insidious virus.

 

Features in this issue of Seaports Magazine touch on ways ports have lent a helping hand to those in need, how a fresh perspective can sometimes lead to unexpected solutions and the infrastructure impacts of COVID-19. Also, learn about AAPA’s new program, ACCELerate Apprenticeships, and take a tour of Port of Québec.

 

P.S. There is exclusive content in the digital version that you won’t see in the print version. Be sure to check it out!

North Carolina State Ports Authority has partnered with Versiant Corporation to improve port productivity across the ports’ multiple business systems and Morehead City and Wilmington terminals through a comprehensive data-analytics-as-a-service (DAaaS) solution. The Port of San Diego’s revitalization of Seaport Village has cultivated a new and exciting partnership. Malibu Farm, founded by celebrity chef Helene Henderson and her husband, actor, film director and restauranteur John Stockwell, will join more than a dozen new stores and restaurants now open or coming soon.

The Port of Long Beach is using a $2.97 million FEMA port security grant to enhance video analytics throughout the harbor and maintain security systems that safeguard commerce at the nation’s second-busiest seaport. “Keeping our security systems and techniques on the cutting edge is critical to maintaining the flow of cargo through our piers,” said Port of Long Beach Executive Director Mario Cordero.

The Port of San Diego’s Port Master Plan Update process is ongoing and has already resulted in a major achievement – a breakthrough vision to redesign the industrial area of Harbor Drive and smartly manage the truck traffic passing through Barrio Logan and National City.

The Alabama State Port Authority set another export coal shipment record loading 146,479 short tons (132,883.5 metric tons) at its McDuffie Coal Terminal. In August, the Port of New York and New Jersey set a new all-time monthly container record, including a new record for intermodal rail volume. At almost 65,000 lifts, the port-wide intermodal ExpressRail system handled 7.8% more volume than August 2019, with overall rail volume up 1.4% year-to-date through August 2020. The Port of Oakland experienced its best September ever for import cargo volume. The port said a record 93,916 TEUs of full import containers last month beat a 2019 record of 84,901 TEUs. Containerized import volume jumped 10.6% in September compared to 2019 totals. The Port of Virginia posted its best September performance having processed more than 256,000 TEUs and surpassing the record set in the same month last year. September was the fourth consecutive month of month-over-month growth for the port.

For the tenth consecutive year, the Oxnard Harbor District, which owns the Port of Hueneme, is being recognized for Excellence in Financial Reporting by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA). The East Bay Economic Development Alliance (East Bay EDA) plans to honor the Port of Oakland at its 2020 Innovation Awards event for its significant contributions as a long-standing generator of jobs and economic vitality in the region. For the twelfth straight year, the Port of San Diego has been honored with the Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award (AEP) by the National Procurement Institute. The port is one of only 42 agencies in California and one of only 34 special districts in the United States and Canada to receive the award.

Washington Maritime Blue and the Port of Seattle have partnered again to launch the next cohort of the Maritime Blue Innovation Accelerator, an intensive four-month program that aims to help maritime businesses develop, grow and secure funding in a sector where capital is often scarce. Established in 2019 and funded by the Port of Seattle and a grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce, the accelerator is advancing key elements of the state’s Strategy for a Blue Economy, which charts a detailed course to becoming a thriving, world-class, sustainable maritime industry by 2050.

President and CEO, San Diego, CA; Port of San Diego

Chief Financial Officer / Associate Director of Administration, Chauvin, LA; Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium