Industrial Supplies in Los Angeles, Ca

The Port of Los Angeles is located on San Pedro Bay in Los Angeles, CA, about 20 miles south of the city's downtown. Also known as the Los Angeles Harbor, it spreads over 7,500 acres of both land and waterfront property. It is nearby the Port of Long Beach, and is the busiest port in the entire United States, with more than 16,000 employees.

The port is an independent, self-reliant department of the city of Los Angeles. Oversight is provided by a five-member board of Harbor Commissioners that are appointed by the mayor and approved by the City Council, and is administered by an executive director.

The port is also the largest cruise ship hub on the West Coast and has three berths for ships, which carry more than 1 million passengers on a yearly basis. The cruise center is posited to be the country's most secure cruise location. It features a security patrolled long-term parking lot that has over 2,500 spaces. When cruise ships are in dock, shuttles take passengers and luggage between the parking lot and the cruise ship.

Unfortunately, with the huge volume of business that the port does, air pollution remains a big issue. Hefty container ships running on highly polluting bunker fuel idle at the docks because they have no ability to utilize shore-generated electricity. Diesel semis and locomotives idle while they sit and wait to be loaded and unloaded. An local air quality regulatory agency did a study that found that air pollution from the port is responsible for 2,000 cases of cancer per million people. The more than 45 tons of nitrogen oxides generated daily by port vessels almost matches the amount from the 350 largest factories and refineries in the area. That amount is expected to increase 70 percent by 2022.

Dealing with these environmental issues is a daily challenge for the port. Attempts have been made to ameliorate the pollution problem through a variety of strategies that include cleaner-burning vehicles and more efficient cargo-handling.

Additionally, a 2.8 million dollar Clean Air Program initiative was initiated by the board of Harbor Commissioners in 2002, aimed at reducing polluting emissions from vessels and cargo-handling equipment. To quicken the implementation of pollution reductions through the use of new, cleaner-burning equipment, 52 million dollars has been allocated through 2008.