Guest Column: Giving Thanks

Guest Column: Giving Thanks

A few days ago, as people dove into a Thanksgiving meal while surrounded by friends and family, seafarers were isolated on board ships at anchor or sailing across the ocean in rolling seas. When dessert was served few, if any, gave thought to the farmers and field workers who labored while working the soil and struggled with the uncertainties of nature to ensure a timely harvest for all of us to enjoy. When people rise on Christmas morning and open up presents, quickly tossing aside wrapping paper and boxes, few will give a thought to the longshoreman who offloaded a…
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Guest Column: Giving Thanks

Guest Column: Giving Thanks

In a few days, as people dive into a Thanksgiving meal while surrounded by friends and family, seafarers are going to be isolated on board ships at anchor or sailing across the ocean in rolling seas. When dessert is served, few if any will give thought to the farmers and field workers who labored while working the soil and struggled with the uncertainties of nature to ensure a timely harvest for all of us to enjoy. When people rise on Christmas morning and open up presents, quickly tossing aside wrapping paper and boxes, few will give a thought to the…
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Guest Column: Cleanest Ports in the Nation

Guest Column: Cleanest Ports in the Nation

From an air quality and climate pollutant standpoint, the state of California has the cleanest ports in the U.S. The success of these ports’ clean air programs is a function of numerous factors. They include port policies, lease agreements, voluntary measures, regulations and an industry willingness to experiment with a variety of technologies, fuels and operational modifications. Most port-related emission categories are now measured in fractions of a percentage point of total emission inventories – i.e., very small numbers. As an example, nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions for marine terminal equipment operating in the South Coast Air Basin make up about…
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Guest Column: The Road to Perdition

Guest Column: The Road to Perdition

Remember California’s Hydrogen Highway? Odds are you probably don’t.  Announced with great fanfare in 2004, after 20 years of implementation, California currently has a modest 63 hydrogen fueling stations scattered throughout the state to service about 12,000 hydrogen cars – including three hydrogen stations operating to fuel heavy duty trucks. When was the last time you rode California’s High-Speed Rail? You haven’t. And unless you are under 40 years of age you may never have that opportunity. California’s High Speed Rail Project is an example of the current state of politics in California with elected officials avoiding making the tough…
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Op-ed: A Ship Within Troubled Waters

Op-ed: A Ship Within Troubled Waters

The vessel/hotel Queen Mary and its conjoined Russian submarine, sit abandoned and rusting in Long Beach. They are an example of civic pride gone awry and failed governmental oversight. The Queen Mary is a story of unfulfilled promises, multiple bankruptcies, city auditor reports,  unaccounted for public funds, multiple operators and a vessel/hotel that has bounced between the City of Long Beach and the Port of Long Beach, back to the city and now a proposal to give it back to the port. The Queen Mary is indeed iconic.  It is also a failure and an example of poor public policy…
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