The Washington state Port of Vancouver’s Board of Commissioners have approved the first step in an effort to bring a Eugene, Oregon-based steel manufacturing firm to the port – and with it the promise of about 125 local jobs.
On Tuesday, the port board unanimously approved declaring a 22-acre port-owned parcel as surplus, setting the stage for the port to sell the property to Farwest Steel Corp.
Farwest plans, if the deal moves forward, to spend just under $5.1 million for the parcel and spend between $20 million and $30 million to develop the facility.
Farwest officials said the firm plans to take advantage of the port's rail access and the new facility, when completed, is expected to receive 200 to 300 rail cars a year. The proposed 300,000 square foot facility, which in addition to manufacturing would also include distribution and office space, could begin construction as early as spring or summer of 2011.
Proponents of the deal, both on the board and in the public, pointed to the areas desperate need for "family-wage" jobs like the 125 local positions Farwest claims the new facility will generate. The port has also calculated that the facility could create as many as 900 indirect jobs, such as truck drivers servicing the facility.
Opponents of the deal, including the union local of the powerful International Longshore and Warehouse Union, argued that selling port property instead of leasing it is a dangerous precedent setting action that would only encourage other firms to seek the same terms, thus weakening the port's ability to control and utilize the port land in the public interest.
The port board is likely to consider the second part of the process – the actual sale of the property to Farwest – sometime in July.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Feds Allocate More Funds to Fight Grape Moth
Federal officials are pledging another $1.75 million to help eradicate an exotic pest that is threatening one of California leading and most lucrative export agriculture products – wine.
Officials from the United States Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will use funds from the 2008 farm bill to continue the already more than $3 million fight against the European grapevine moth, which feeds on grapes.
The tiny 1/4-inch long pest, which is well known to growers in Europe, Japan, southern Russia, Chile and the near East, can also attack fruits and flowers of such plants as blackberries, cherries, nectarines, olives, persimmons, pomegranates and rosemary.
State and federal agriculture officials have declared the infestation of the moth, first discovered in the northern California Bay Area late last year, to be a serious threat to the state's $18 billion a year wine making industry. Since the first discovery of a grapevine moth, others have been discovered in the grape-growing areas of the Bay Area. Experts are still unclear as to how widespread the infestation may be.
The moth can feed on either the grape fruit or flower, but when it feeds on mature grapes it can cause both visible damage to the fruit and a botrytis infection, also known as bunch rot. Both the visible damage and the rot render the fruit useless.
The European grapevine moth is in the same taxonomic family as the Australian light brown apple moth, which has already led to a more than $75 million eradication program since an infestation began in California's Bay Area in 2007.
USDA officials are also set to announce this week that an additional $1 million will be made available directly to growers for the use of environmentally friendly treatments to eradicate the moth.
Officials from the United States Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will use funds from the 2008 farm bill to continue the already more than $3 million fight against the European grapevine moth, which feeds on grapes.
The tiny 1/4-inch long pest, which is well known to growers in Europe, Japan, southern Russia, Chile and the near East, can also attack fruits and flowers of such plants as blackberries, cherries, nectarines, olives, persimmons, pomegranates and rosemary.
State and federal agriculture officials have declared the infestation of the moth, first discovered in the northern California Bay Area late last year, to be a serious threat to the state's $18 billion a year wine making industry. Since the first discovery of a grapevine moth, others have been discovered in the grape-growing areas of the Bay Area. Experts are still unclear as to how widespread the infestation may be.
The moth can feed on either the grape fruit or flower, but when it feeds on mature grapes it can cause both visible damage to the fruit and a botrytis infection, also known as bunch rot. Both the visible damage and the rot render the fruit useless.
The European grapevine moth is in the same taxonomic family as the Australian light brown apple moth, which has already led to a more than $75 million eradication program since an infestation began in California's Bay Area in 2007.
USDA officials are also set to announce this week that an additional $1 million will be made available directly to growers for the use of environmentally friendly treatments to eradicate the moth.
Woodland Port Top Exec Named to Area Development Boards
The recently hired top executive at the Washington state Port of Woodland has been named to the boards of economic development groups in Cowlitz and Wahkiakum counties.
Port executive director Nelson Holmberg, who joined the port in April after serving three years as the Port of Vancouver USA communications director, will take seats on the board of directors of the Cowlitz Economic Development Council and the executive board of the Cowlitz Wahkiakum Council of Governments.
Holmberg, 43, has led the Port of Woodland since April. Before that, he worked for the Port of Vancouver as communications manager for three years.
Paul Cline, president of the Woodland port’s three-member board of commissioners, told The Columbian that the board was “...very happy with Nelson’s level of involvement.”
Located about 85 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean on the Columbia River, the Port of Woodland has about 200 acres of industrial property serviced by Interstate Highway 5, BNSF and Union Pacific main lines, and a federally maintained deep-draft water channel that is 40 feet deep and 600 feet wide.
Port executive director Nelson Holmberg, who joined the port in April after serving three years as the Port of Vancouver USA communications director, will take seats on the board of directors of the Cowlitz Economic Development Council and the executive board of the Cowlitz Wahkiakum Council of Governments.
Holmberg, 43, has led the Port of Woodland since April. Before that, he worked for the Port of Vancouver as communications manager for three years.
Paul Cline, president of the Woodland port’s three-member board of commissioners, told The Columbian that the board was “...very happy with Nelson’s level of involvement.”
Located about 85 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean on the Columbia River, the Port of Woodland has about 200 acres of industrial property serviced by Interstate Highway 5, BNSF and Union Pacific main lines, and a federally maintained deep-draft water channel that is 40 feet deep and 600 feet wide.
Guam Port Unveils Modernization Plan Draft
The Port Authority of Guam is offering up the first views of what the port may look like after a more than $200 million modernization plan that the island and United States military label as essential to handle an impending transfer of U.S military from Okinawa, Japan to Guam.
The PAG design and engineering consultant for the modernization plan, Parsons Brinckerhoff, has released a preliminary draft of the what port upgrades will be performed under the plan.
Once Parsons and the PAG have finalized the first phase of upgrades, the design plan will be handed over to Maryland-based contractor EA Engineering, Science and Technology, who last week was awarded the build contract for the modernization program by the U.S. federal government.
In presenting the preliminary draft to the PAG on Tuesday, Jeff Schechtman, director of Parsons Brinckerhoff's Ports and Marine Division said that the modernization will "include a phase expansion of the terminal, terminal yard, implementation of modern systems, new facilities, more streamlined operations at the Port, and also allow for enhanced storage capacity for the port to move more cargo through the Port as the population of the island grows over the next five to 10 years."
Parsons has been working on the design plan since late last year.
The PAG plans to release the finalized Phase 1-A portion of the modernization plan in July, with construction expected to begin in summer of fall of next year.
Parsons, back in 2007, was the original consultant that identified the more than $200 million in upgrades needed at the port to handle the U.S. military's transfer of 8,000 Marines and 9,000 dependents from Okinawa to Guam, The move was originally slated to start later this year and run through 2014.
The PAG design and engineering consultant for the modernization plan, Parsons Brinckerhoff, has released a preliminary draft of the what port upgrades will be performed under the plan.
Once Parsons and the PAG have finalized the first phase of upgrades, the design plan will be handed over to Maryland-based contractor EA Engineering, Science and Technology, who last week was awarded the build contract for the modernization program by the U.S. federal government.
In presenting the preliminary draft to the PAG on Tuesday, Jeff Schechtman, director of Parsons Brinckerhoff's Ports and Marine Division said that the modernization will "include a phase expansion of the terminal, terminal yard, implementation of modern systems, new facilities, more streamlined operations at the Port, and also allow for enhanced storage capacity for the port to move more cargo through the Port as the population of the island grows over the next five to 10 years."
Parsons has been working on the design plan since late last year.
The PAG plans to release the finalized Phase 1-A portion of the modernization plan in July, with construction expected to begin in summer of fall of next year.
Parsons, back in 2007, was the original consultant that identified the more than $200 million in upgrades needed at the port to handle the U.S. military's transfer of 8,000 Marines and 9,000 dependents from Okinawa to Guam, The move was originally slated to start later this year and run through 2014.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
$400 Million Guam Port Upgrade Contract Awarded
The US Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration, or MARAD, has awarded Maryland-based engineering firm EA Engineering, Science and Technology Inc., a seven-year, $400 million contract to modernize the commercial port of Guam.
Under the terms of the contract, EA will oversee and with its partners, conduct all work required under the Port Authority of Guam-adopted 2008 modernization plan.
"The timely completion of this major infrastructure improvement program is necessary to provide modern and efficient transportation access to the island of Guam, and to meet the Department of Defense requirements for the Guam buildup," said EA officials in a statement.
The PAG modernization plan is part of an effort by the island to prepare for the transfer of about 8,000 Marines and 9,000 from Okinawa, Japan to Guam by 2014. Nearly 75 percent of the modernization plan's called-for $207 million in port improvement projects are directly related to meeting the requirements of the military buildup on the island.
The PAG is still trying to find funds to begin the modernization program. Earlier this year, the port was denied $50 million in recovery funds by the United States Department of Transportation – funds that would have been used by PAG to obtain an additional $49 million low-interest loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The PAG is now hoping to receive $50 million from the US Department of Defense to begin work on the modernization program – a move encouraged by a recent letter from President Barack Obama to members of Congress requesting support of the funding.
PAG officials said they believe that the awarding of the EA contract by MARAD signals a commitment from the federal government to move forward on the modernization program.
Exact terms of the EA contract were not immediately released and MARAD and PAG officials plan to meet Wednesday on Guam to discuss preliminary details.
Under the terms of the contract, EA will oversee and with its partners, conduct all work required under the Port Authority of Guam-adopted 2008 modernization plan.
"The timely completion of this major infrastructure improvement program is necessary to provide modern and efficient transportation access to the island of Guam, and to meet the Department of Defense requirements for the Guam buildup," said EA officials in a statement.
The PAG modernization plan is part of an effort by the island to prepare for the transfer of about 8,000 Marines and 9,000 from Okinawa, Japan to Guam by 2014. Nearly 75 percent of the modernization plan's called-for $207 million in port improvement projects are directly related to meeting the requirements of the military buildup on the island.
The PAG is still trying to find funds to begin the modernization program. Earlier this year, the port was denied $50 million in recovery funds by the United States Department of Transportation – funds that would have been used by PAG to obtain an additional $49 million low-interest loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The PAG is now hoping to receive $50 million from the US Department of Defense to begin work on the modernization program – a move encouraged by a recent letter from President Barack Obama to members of Congress requesting support of the funding.
PAG officials said they believe that the awarding of the EA contract by MARAD signals a commitment from the federal government to move forward on the modernization program.
Exact terms of the EA contract were not immediately released and MARAD and PAG officials plan to meet Wednesday on Guam to discuss preliminary details.
Los Angeles Port: Pollution Programs Working
Environmental programs at the Port of Los Angeles have cut port-generated diesel emissions by double-digit numbers, according to the port's 2009 air emissions inventory released last week.
Diesel particulate matter, most commonly seen as soot in tailpipe emissions, declined 37 percent at port area monitoring stations compared to 2008 levels said the report. Levels of port-generated nitrogen oxide, or NOx, and sulfur oxide, or SOx, also dropped in 2009, down 28 percent and 36 percent respectively.
When compared to the 2005 baseline emissions measurement year, particulate matter has declined 52 percent, NOx emissions were down 33 percent, and SOx emissions declined 56 percent.
Several environmental programs are being pointed to by the port as the reason behind the declines, including: the trucking industry's rapid modernization of the port-servicing fleet; use of low-sulfur fuel by the shipping industry; ship-to-shore power facilities at several terminals; the shipping industry buy in to a voluntary speed reduction program; growing use of alternative fuels in off-road yard equipment and harbor craft; and, a modernization program of the port-servicing railroad's fleet of locomotives.
The major contributor to the pollution reduction, according to the port, has been the Clean Truck Program. Implemented in October 2008, the program utilized access licenses and bans on certain model year trucks to force the local drayage industry to modernize their fleets to 2007 or newer model year vehicles – which in some cases run 90 percent cleaner than the older trucks they replaced.
All of the cited programs are part of the Clean Air Action Plan, an omnibus environmental plan developed and adopted jointly with the neighboring Port of Long Beach in 2006, that set a 45 percent reduction over 2005 pollution levels as a 2012 goal.
Both ports are now considering new 2014 goals for the CAAP, which would reduce particulate matter emissions by 72 percent, NOx emissions by 22 percent, and SOx emissions by 93 percent below 2005 levels. The Port of Long Beach is expected to release its own inventory within the next several weeks. In the past, the two ports inventories have tended to mirror each other in measured results.
Port of Tacoma Faces Bond Dilemma
The Port of Tacoma, which has seen 20 straight months of total cargo box declines, could really use some good news for once.
Unfortunately, its luck, or lack thereof, is still holding.
Two years ago, port officials signed financial deals with Dexia Credit and Merrill Lynch Capital Services to help finance the port's Blair-Hylebos Project. Under the terms of the deals, the port agreed to issue $230 million worth of bonds.
Last year, though, the port canceled the project.
Port commissioners were told last week that the port remains obligated to issue the bonds by 2013 or face penalties of about $24 million depending on the going interest rate.
Port officials told the governing board they believe they can work with Dexia and Merrill Lynch to extricate themselves from the situation by substituting existing bonds for those the port is required to issue.
However, the escape plan only makes sense if the port has profit-generating capital projects ready to finance and interest rates are more than the agreed 4.13 percent. Current bond interest rates have been hovering between 4.25 percent and 4.5 percent since January.
Port commissioners said that they believe the renegotiated deals would eventually cost the port money – a particular concern given the ports recent staff layoffs and cuts to maintenance as cargo-generated profits have slipped.
Unfortunately, its luck, or lack thereof, is still holding.
Two years ago, port officials signed financial deals with Dexia Credit and Merrill Lynch Capital Services to help finance the port's Blair-Hylebos Project. Under the terms of the deals, the port agreed to issue $230 million worth of bonds.
Last year, though, the port canceled the project.
Port commissioners were told last week that the port remains obligated to issue the bonds by 2013 or face penalties of about $24 million depending on the going interest rate.
Port officials told the governing board they believe they can work with Dexia and Merrill Lynch to extricate themselves from the situation by substituting existing bonds for those the port is required to issue.
However, the escape plan only makes sense if the port has profit-generating capital projects ready to finance and interest rates are more than the agreed 4.13 percent. Current bond interest rates have been hovering between 4.25 percent and 4.5 percent since January.
Port commissioners said that they believe the renegotiated deals would eventually cost the port money – a particular concern given the ports recent staff layoffs and cuts to maintenance as cargo-generated profits have slipped.
