The Port of San Diego has long been a leader in clean air efforts and is ramping up that focus with a suite of technological and infrastructure advancements designed to simultaneously reduce emissions and promote sustainable commerce.
Thanks to fast-moving advancements in reduced (or zero) emission technologies, San Diego and other ports do not have to choose between environmental quality and economic growth. With the right approach, maritime industries can be entirely compatible with cleaner air and a healthier environment for everyone who lives, works, and plays on and around San Diego Bay.
The Port of San Diego has been investing in and deploying new technologies to improve overall air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the region in support of our communities, environment, and regional economy. At the direction of the Board of Port Commissioners, the port is now taking a more strategic approach to identify projects that will improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions while continuing to transition to more efficient, modern, and sustainable maritime operations.
These efforts will also align nicely with and complement state regulations set forth by the AB 617 Community Air Protection Program established by the California Air Resources Board (CARB), which tasks various local air districts to work with communities to develop community-focused emission reduction programs.
Dedication to public health, quality jobs, noise reduction, ecological systems, education, coastal access, and community enrichment has led the port to explore industry-leading sustainability and pollutant reduction technology. Investments in sustainable maritime operations are investments in the health and prosperity of the 34-mile port area and our neighbours in the surrounding communities.
For over a decade, the port has been making key investments in efforts to mitigate climate change and help the port reduce emissions. In 2013, the Port of San Diego became the first port in the nation to adopt a Climate Action Plan. Over the years, from awards to grants, the port has been recognised for its continued efforts to improve and enhance sustainability efforts. In 2018, the Port of San Diego received a US$5 million grant from the California Energy Commission to install a solar-powered microgrid at the Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal, increasing energy resilience, lowering electricity costs, and reducing emissions.
Doubling shore power
The next big item on the port’s “to-do” list is the increase in shore power. The Shore Power Capital Improvement Project will be the latest project in the port’s clean air quest to break ground, setting precedent for future port redevelopment in San Diego and across California.
The Shore Power Capital Improvement Project is a multimillion-dollar effort to expand existing power infrastructure in the Port of San Diego’s electric shore power system, including the Broadway Pier and B Street terminals. Doubling shore power at these two cruise terminals will mean two cruise vessels calling on San Diego can plug in at the same time. This will help to further improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions because the ships will not have to run their diesel auxiliary engines while in port.
San Diego port first installed shore power at the cruise terminals in 2010, making it among the first ports in California to have shore power available for cruise ships and beating by nearly four years a state regulation to reduce diesel particulate emissions from at least 50% of cruise calls. The shore power system currently only supports a single cruise vessel at a time. Planned expansion of shore power at the terminals will double existing capabilities, reducing the time and number of vessels that idly produce pollutants by up to 90%. Construction of these improvements is expected to begin later in 2021.
Slashing emissions
The port’s goal is to complete the shore power expansion by September 2022, four months ahead of recently updated CARB regulations that require essentially all cruise ships calling on California ports to use shore power beginning 1 January 1 2023. Having two shore power outlets at the cruise ship terminals will result in at least a 90 percent overall reduction of harmful pollutants such as NOx and Diesel Particulate Matter as well as a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
Such remarkable projections beg the question: why didn’t ports across California adapt their energy capabilities sooner? The answer is likely tied to cost – electric energy infrastructure is expensive and, until state authorities signaled changes to regulatory standards late in 2019, there was little obvious interest outside of the Port of San Diego.
On the federal level, there are and have been grant opportunities, but to say they are very competitive is an understatement. So, despite revenue losses due to the pandemic and because it is essential that we move forward on this shore power expansion project now, we found the money within, making some budget moves to allocate US$4.1 million to the project and committing US$500,000 from our Low Carbon Fuel Standard Credits fund generated from our existing cruise shore power system.
With cruises being critical to San Diego’s tourism economy, this is a good investment and is just one of the port’s many clean air projects on the horizon. Planning, commitment, and action are the keys to the port’s sustainability efforts, and we continue to be leaders in terms of innovative reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
Setting State precedent
The conversation surrounding greenhouse gas emissions and pollution in California dates back nearly twenty years. AB 32, the Global Warming Solutions Act, introduced the first benchmarks for emissions reduction in 2006. In the fifteen years since, regulations surrounding transportation emissions have only expanded. In August 2020, CARB updated the “at-berth” regulations, requiring ports and vessels to reduce pollutants while docked by utilizing a CARB-approved control measure or plugging directly into electric shore power.
While regulations are driving change in many areas, the Port of San Diego is proud to be an early adopter of increased shore power. The Port of San Diego’s shore power expansion meets and exceeds these new regulatory standards and will be operational before the compliance deadline of 1 January 1 2023.
Early compliance and robust shore power facilities at B Street and Broadway Pier cruise terminals will also potentially introduce new business opportunities for the port area. While the cruise industry has been on hold pending compliance with the COVID-related Centers for Disease Control and Prevention‘s Framework for Conditional Sailing Order, the port is enthusiastic about the cruise lines returning in the fall.
The port’s cruise sector has a tremendous economic impact on the region, growing from US$82 million to $131 million between 2014 and 2018, supporting everything from retail and hospitality to security and logistics. The completion of the shore power expansion will allow the port to support our cruise partners in an efficient, high volume and safe manner when the time comes. Every cruise ship that homeports in San Diego brings an estimated two million dollars to the local economy.
In addition to having the infrastructure available for nearly every cruise ship to run off electricity while in port, the port is also installing a solar-powered microgrid at its Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal, adding more public electric vehicle chargers on the bayfront, and more.
2022 and beyond
The Port of San Diego has plotted a sustainable course guided in partnership with the community. The completion of the shore power expansion project is just the beginning of a suite of electrification projects on the horizon including:
- New shore power system with at least two shore power outlets by 2025 at the National City Marine Terminal, the port’s automobile and lumber imports terminal;
- An additional shore power outlet by 2031 to the existing two shore power outlets at the Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal, the port’s bulk, breakbulk, and specialty cargo terminal;
- More vehicle and cargo handling equipment electrification at our cargo and cruise terminals;
- Additional public electric vehicle (EV) charging stations along the bayfront; and
- Infrastructure improvements including a 700 KW solar photovoltaic system with storage and microgrid at the Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal.
The Port of San Diego is demonstrating that economic development and environmental quality and sustainability are not mutually exclusive, and our industry peers and neighbors will be following our upcoming efforts with great anticipation. To learn more about the port’s sustainability efforts, visit portofsandiego.org
Michael Zucchet is chairman of the Port of San Diego Board of Port Commissioners.