Breaking a year-old record for container cargo volume, marine terminals at the Port of Long Beach moved 6,709,818 twenty-foot equivalent units in 2005, an increase of 16.1% over a record-breaking 2004.

With strong US demand for low-cost Asian-made consumer goods, and more 8,000-teu ships bringing those products to Long Beach, the inbound container count climbed 12% to 3.3 million teus.

With Asia scrambling for raw materials, exports jumped 21.2% to 1.2 million teus. The gap between imports and exports meant that the number of empty containers (most headed overseas to be re-filled) increased 20.1% to 2.1 million teus.

Dec. sees slight container decline

The Port's container totals dipped slightly in December 2005 compared to the same month a year ago, declining one percent to 545,772 teus ' the first year-to-year decrease since February 2004.

Whether a one-month anomaly or the beginning of a slowing, imports were off slightly, down 1.2% to 266,358 teus. Exports remained strong, climbing 11.6% to 104,184 teus. Empties dropped seven percent to 175,230 teus.

Led by gains in containerized cargo, the total cargo tonnage at the Port in 2005 climbed 9.5% to a record-breaking 159.2 million metric revenue tons, compared with 2004.

General cargo shipments, which include containers, steel, vehicles and lumber, increased 12.5% to 117.3 million MRTs. Petroleum/liquid bulk shipments were flat, increasing 0.9% to 34.7 million MRTs. Dry bulk shipments such as industrial salt and cement rose 6.2% to 7.2 million MRTs.

Allowing the Port to make its calculations based on weight or volume, a metric revenue ton is a measure for cargo based on 1,000 kilograms or one cubic meter.

No congesiton in 2005

Cargo moved smoothly through the Port in 2005, unlike 2004, because of adequate labor and a couple of notable changes in trucking and rail operations.

The PierPASS OffPeak truck gate program organized by San Pedro Bay terminal operators channeled one-third of their truck moves into night and Saturday shifts when there was less traffic. From its launch in July through early December, PierPASS diverted more than 1 million truck trips from daytime traffic.

Long Beach marine terminal operators also increased their on-dock rail activities, going from 11.3% of all container moves in 2003 to 15.3% in 2004 to an estimated 19% in 2005. There was an increase from 870,000 teus in 2004 to about 1.3 million teus in 2005 ' eliminating more than 200,000 truck trips.

TTI 's Pier T facility busiest

The Port's busiest container terminal in 2005 was Total Terminals International's Pier T facility, home to Hanjin, China Shipping, Sinotrans, US Lines, and most recently, Wan Hai.

TTI reported more than 1 million container moves, and a 30 percent increase in its on-dock activity to more than 236,000 rail lifts.

'Scoping' meeting

The Port has scheduled a second 'scoping' meeting to gather public comments on a proposed project to increase cargo-handling efficiency and environmentally friendly operations at its Middle Harbor container terminals.

The. February 6 meeting was set to gather input for a draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS). An earlier meeting was held in January.

The Port's Middle Harbor terminals are the California United Terminals facility at Piers D and E, and the Long Beach Container Terminal at Pier F. The redevelopment project proposes to reconfigure the two irregularly shaped facilities to create one, more efficient rectangular-shaped terminal. The project also would expand on-dock rail and upgrade other equipment to meet environment guidelines in the Port's Green Port Policy.

The Project's 50-page Notice of Proposal is available at the Port web site, www.polb.com, and the Port offices, 925 Harbor Plaza.

'Twin ports' update

Representatives of the twin ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles met in January for an update on existing joint programs and to explore opportunities for additional cooperative