Regulation and Response at the San Pedro Bay Ports
The purpose of this research is to analyze responses by the ports and other industry stakeholders to the growing pressures to mitigate the air pollution impacts of port-related trade. Historically the ports have enjoyed significant independence and support from local and state government because of the large economic benefits generated by port-related trade. Public perceptions of port-related trade have changed dramatically since 2000, however, primarily due to growing evidence of health damages associated with particulate emissions, and continued rapid growth in trade volume. Faced with growing public discontent, state and local political leaders have proposed increasingly aggressive mitigation requirements. The ports, terminal operators, steamship lines, and other stakeholders have responded with both resistance and pre-emptive actions. Two explanations are suggested for the changed policy environment. The first is the imperative for social legitimacy: in an era of raised environmental sensibilities, the ports, like other large organizations, conform to changing norms of behavior. The second is the institutional structure of port-related trade, in which outcomes are determined by the relative market power of different stakeholders. Studying responses to the changed environment in the context of organizational motivations and institutional relationships will lead to a greater understanding of the nature of the port-related trade industry and the challenges associated with adapting to increasingly ambitious environmental goals. This research builds on several previous METRANS studies, most importantly one on AB 2650 (04-06), the other on the PierPass program (05-12). We conduct our analysis by 1) documenting the recent history of local and state legislative efforts and stakeholder responses, 2) interviewing industry stakeholders, 3) evaluating specific operational changes intended to mitigate environmental externalities. Results of this research will add to our understanding of the behavior of the port-related trade industry and assist in designing effective policies and incentives for solving environmental problems.
Language
- English
Project
- Status: Active
- Funding: $90000.00
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Contract Numbers:
08-06
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Sponsor Organizations:
National Center for Metropolitan Transportation Research
University of Southern California
650 Childs Way, RGL 107
Los Angeles, CA United States 90089-0626 -
Project Managers:
Valentine, Victoria
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Performing Organizations:
University of Southern California, Los Angeles
University Park Campus
Los Angeles, CA United States 90089 -
Principal Investigators:
Giuliano, Genevieve
- Start Date: 20070901
- Expected Completion Date: 0
- Actual Completion Date: 0
- Source Data: RiP Project 26565
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Air pollution; Air quality management; Environmental impacts; Freight traffic; Freight transportation; Health hazards; Marine terminals; Pollutants; Port operations; Terminal operations; Transportation planning
- Identifier Terms: Port of Long Beach; Port of Los Angeles
- Subject Areas: Freight Transportation; Marine Transportation; Terminals and Facilities; I15: Environment;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 01461379
- Record Type: Research project
- Source Agency: National Center for Metropolitan Transportation Research
- Contract Numbers: 08-06
- Files: RIP
- Created Date: Jan 3 2013 1:45PM