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July, 2009

NEWS BULLETIN
Friday, July 31, 2009

Port of Bellingham plans
new agreement with Lummi Nation

BELLINGHAM — The Lummi Nation and the Port of Bellingham have set the stage for a new agreement in their long-standing cooperative partnership on Bellingham Bay. The port and tribe have been working together under a series of Bellingham Bay agreements since 1996. The latest step focuses on their shared interests in economic development and environmental stewardship, and establishes a structure for joint decision-making that will allow a number of important waterfront projects to move forward. Next week the Lummi Nation and the port's Board of Commissioners will vote on a Framework Agreement that recognizes the common goals of both parties, the importance of their working relationship, and the shared principles that will be used to support federally recognized Tribal treaty interests and to help move priority port projects from concept to reality. The port's Board of Commissioners will vote on these agreements at their regular meeting at 3 p.m., Aug. 4, the Lummi Indian Business Council will also vote on these agreements at their regular meeting at 1 p.m., Aug. 4.


Port of Bremerton continues
string of clean audit reports

BREMERTON — For the 17th consecutive year, the Port of Bremerton has received a clean audit report from the Washington State Auditor's Office. The state’s annual audit for 2008 reported no deficiencies, no instances of non-compliance with state and federal laws and no practices in violation of the port's own policies and procedures. In examining the port's internal financial practices and activities as a whole, the office found that the port's controls were "adequate to safeguard public assets."


WTSA member carriers
plan general rate increase

OAKLAND — Member container lines in the Westbound Transpacific Stabilization Agreement (WTSA) have moved to halt the steady erosion of rates in the U.S.-Asia freight market in recent months, with a general rate increase (GRI) recommended to take effect September 1, 2009 for all cargoes moving to all Asian destinations. Effective September 1, WTSA members say they intend to raise their dry cargo rates – including rates for commodities exempt from tariff filing – by US$150 per 40-foot container (FEU) and $120 per 20-foot container (TEU) from the U.S. West Coast and by $200 per FEU and $160 per TEU for intermodal moves or all-water shipment via the U.S. East and Gulf Coasts. Refrigerated cargo rates would be raised by $250 per FEU and $200 per TEU from the West Coast and by $300 per FEU and $240 per TEU for intermodal and for East and Gulf Coast shipments.


Coast Guard gives nod
to Massachusetts LNG site

BOSTON — The Coast Guard has signed a letter of recommendation regarding the Weaver’s Cove Energy, LLC proposal to construct an offshore LNG berth in Mt. Hope Bay, Mass. As part of the Coast Guard’s contribution to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) review process, the Captain of the Port, Southeastern New England, along with key stakeholders reviewed and validated the navigation safety and maritime security aspects of the Weaver’s Cove Energy, LLC LNG proposal. The letter of recommendation provides the Coast Guard Captain of the Port's assessment of the suitability of the waterway for the LNG marine traffic associated with the proposal to FERC to consider when it makes its permitting decision. Weaver’s Cove Energy, LLC intends to make up to 70 LNG tanker deliveries each year to the offshore berth, if FERC approves the project. FERC has final approval authority on site placement and authorization to construct the berth.


US rail freight total
down again during week

WSHINGTON, DC — The Association of American Railroads reports that rail traffic remains down year over year for the week ended July 11, 2009. U.S railroads reported originating 262,210 cars, down 17.9 percent compared with the same week in 2008. Regionally, carloadings were down 12.8 percent in the West and 25.6 percent in the East. Rail carloadings were at their highest level in 14 weeks. Intermodal volume of 176,887 trailers or containers was down 23.7 percent from the same week last year. Container volume fell 19.4 percent and trailer volume dropped 40.3 percent. Total volume on U.S. railroads for the week ending July 11 was estimated at 28 billion ton-miles, off 16.9 percent from the same week last year. All 19 carload freight commodity groups were down from last year, with declines ranging from 4.2 percent for the catch-all category labeled “all other carloads” to 58.4 percent for metals and metal products. For the first 27 weeks of 2009, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 7,069,102 carloads, down 19.2 percent from 2008; 4,993,245 trailers or containers, down 17.1 percent, and total volume of an estimated 751.7 billion ton-miles, down 18.2 percent.


NEWS BULLETIN
Thursday, July 30, 2009

Oregon governor signs
new transportation act

PORTLAND — Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski has signed into law the Jobs and Transportation Act of 2009 (House Bill 2001), which is the state’s largest long-term investment in transportation infrastructure, putting thousands of Oregonians to work, while making sustainable and strategic investments in all sectors of our transportation system, including roads, bridges, bike and pedestrian facilities, mass transit, railroads, ports and airports. The Jobs and Transportation Act invests more than $1 billion to address Oregon’s statewide transportation needs. The bill provides an annual investment of $300 million to address deferred maintenance for roads and bridges. Additionally the bill provides more than $800 million in bond proceeds to relieve key bottlenecks, improve existing facilities and address safety concerns. The bill also continues the ConnectOregon program to improve ports, rail systems, transit and airports. These investments are expected to create and sustain more than 6,700 jobs a year for a total of 40,000 jobs over the next ten years, beginning with the next construction season.


Port of Tacoma nets funds
for TOTE environmental project

TACOMA — The Port of Tacoma has received nearly $1.5 million from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to reduce diesel and greenhouse gas emissions by retrofitting ships and adding electrical plug-ins at the Totem Ocean Trailer Express, Inc. (TOTE) terminal. This clean diesel project will create jobs while protecting the region’s air quality. TOTE, a private shipping company that serves the Alaska trade, already has spent almost $900,000 to retrofit two ships to accommodate shore power connections, which allow ships to turn off their engines at the terminal. TOTE also has committed to contributing another $283,000 to complete the project. TOTE ships will become the first to plug in at Port of Tacoma berths.


Port of Tacoma promotes
two to director positions

TACOMA — The Port of Tacoma has promoted Kevin Zinski to director of Maintenance and Jack Hedge to Director of Real Estate & Industrial Development. In his new position, Mr. Zinski is responsible for directing, planning, managing and integrating programs, personnel and operations to maintain and preserve Port facilities and equipment. He joined the port in August 2006 as assistant director of the department. Before joining the port, Mr. Zinski managed facilities for Safeco Insurance and served as assistant maintenance manager at Pierce Transit. In his new position, Mr. Hedge is responsible for leading and developing the port’s real estate line of business to improve its economic growth. His duties include managing and marketing port real estate assets and acquiring and developing new properties to support port goals and operations. Mr. Hedge joined the port in May 2006 as a real estate manager. Before he joined the port, Mr. Hedge held various leadership roles in private industry, including Wood Group Power Operation in Atlanta, Ga., North American Energy Services in Issaquah and Enserch Development in Houston, Texas.


Tidewater executive named
to inland waterways board

VANCOUVER, USA — Tidewater has announced that John Pigott has been selected to serve as a member of the Inland Waterways Users Board for a term that will run through June 30, 2011. The Inland Waterways Users Board is an industry Federal advisory committee whose 11 member board represents all geographic areas on the fuel-taxed inland waterways system of the United States. The board’s purpose is to make recommendations to the Congress and the Secretary of the Army on the priorities and spending from the Inland Waterways Trust Fund for construction and rehabilitation projects on the fuel-taxed waterways system. Such recommendations are made in an annual report to the Secretary of the Army and the Congress. Mr. Pigott has been with Tidewater since 1997 when he was hired as port captain, he was promoted to general manager in 2005, and most recently assumed the position of assistant to the president focusing on government and industry affairs.


New cell phone lot opens
for Seattle cruise terminal users

SEATTLE — The Port of Seattle reports that friends and family picking up cruise passengers at the new Smith Cove Cruise Terminal at Pier 91 are encouraged to use the new cell phone lot. The goal of this new amenity is to alleviate congestion around the terminal building. It is important for there to be a place for drivers to contact cruise passengers while they are collecting luggage.


NEWS BULLETIN
Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Officials join Port of Vancouver
to dedicate water cleanup facility

VANCOUVER, USA — On July 27, Washington State legislators helped the Port of Vancouver USA dedicate its new Groundwater Cleanup Facility. Rep Jim Moeller, D-Vancouver and Rep. Jim Jacks, D-Vancouver were instrumental in helping maintain state Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) funding for the groundwater cleanup process. The treatment towers – the most comprehensive method to cleaning the rest of the contamination – began pumping and treating contaminated groundwater in June. The legislators joined Commissioners Nancy Baker, Brian Wolfe and Jerry Oliver, as well as Schuyler Hoss – Southwest Washington representative to Gov. Chris Gregoire, and Rebecca Lawson of the Department of Ecology – at the event. The facility will help speed the completion of the cleanup of TCE contamination in groundwater under the Fruit Valley neighborhood in West Vancouver.


ATA truck tonnage index
down during month of June

ARLINGTON, VA — The American Trucking Associations’ advance seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index fell 2.4 percent in June. In May, SA tonnage jumped 3.2 percent. June’s decrease, which lowered the SA index to 99.8 (2000=100), wasn’t large enough to completely offset the robust gain in the previous month. The not seasonally adjusted (NSA) index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 107.3 in June, up 5.2 percent from May. Compared with June 2008, tonnage fell 13.6 percent, which surpassed May’s 11 percent year-over-year drop. June’s contraction was the largest year-over-year decrease of the current cycle, exceeding the 13.2 percent drop in April.


Deal paves way for Crowley
to manage petroleum tankers

JACKSONVILLE, FL — A Settlement Agreement recently approved by a U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge in New York has become effective, clearing the way for an investor group led by The Blackstone Group to terminate their relationship with U.S. Shipping and to retain Crowley Maritime Corporation to manage five U.S.-flag petroleum tankers for the newly renamed company, American Petroleum Tankers LLC ("APT" or the "Company"). The five tankers, two of which are in operation and three of which are due for delivery from shipbuilder NASSCO in San Diego through 2010, were to be owned by a joint venture controlled primarily by affiliates of The Blackstone Group and U.S. Shipping Partners. U.S. Shipping filed for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 earlier this year. On July 17, 2009, the Bankruptcy Court approved a Settlement Agreement under which U.S. Shipping agreed to release its ownership interest and management role with the Company. With the termination of U.S. Shipping's association with the Company, Blackstone has announced that the Company will continue under the name American Petroleum Tankers. Crowley Maritime Corporation has been appointed as the construction manager for the three tankers still being built and vessel manager for all five vessels. The Company also expects to put in place new debt financing led by DVB Bank SE.


Over-allotment option
exercised for FreeSeas stock

PIRAEUS, Greece — FreeSeas Inc., a transporter of drybulk cargoes through the ownership and operation of a fleet of seven Handysize vessels and two Handymax vessels, has announced that the underwriters of its common stock offering exercised their over-allotment option to purchase an additional 1,309,715 shares of its common stock at $1.80 per share for additional gross proceeds of $2,357,487. The option was granted in connection with the company's common stock offering of 8,731,436 shares of its common stock, which priced on July 22, 2009. Gross proceeds from the common share offering and the over-allotment option total approximately $18,074,072. Proceeds from the offering will be used primarily for the acquisition of an additional drybulk vessel, as well as for the repayment of debt and general working capital purposes


Horizon Lines releases
second quarter numbers

CHARLOTTE, NC — Horizon Lines, Inc. has reported results for its fiscal second quarter ended June 21, 2009. On a GAAP basis, the company reported a net loss of $(31.1) million, or $(1.02) per share, on revenue of $278.5 million. The results reflect certain items, including a $20 million charge related to the previously disclosed class-action legal settlement in Puerto Rico, and a $10.5 million tax valuation allowance. After excluding these and other charges totaling $35.2 million, or $1.15 per share after tax, adjusted net income was $4.1 million, or $0.13 per fully diluted share.


NEWS BULLETIN
Monday, July 27, 2009

Cell phone waiting lot
reopens at Sea Tac Airport

SEATTLE — Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is re-opening a new, larger Cell Phone Waiting Lot at 9 a.m. today. The new location, just north of the old lot on Air Cargo Road, includes nearly 100 spaces for vehicles, doubling the size of the old lot. The Cell Phone Waiting Lot is a free service from The Port of Seattle that allows drivers to wait up to 30 minutes in the lot until arriving passengers have deplaned, collected luggage and called to be picked up outside of Baggage Claim. Drivers must stay with their vehicles. Be aware there is no parking or waiting allowed on the airport roadway shoulders at any time. The previous lot was closed for six weeks in order to facilitate a new air cargo operation in the cargo terminal building next to the lot. The building now houses a number of air cargo airline operations that ship freight of all kinds, including exports of Washington state’s bumper cherry crop. The Port of Seattle estimates lease and cargo related earnings of $40,000 per week from that facility during the closure period, or over $240,000 in total. The new lot was not available to open until today. For more information on Sea-Tac Airport’s parking options, visit our Web site at http://www.portseattle.org/seatac/ground/.


FMC recovers penalties
in new round of agreements

WASHINGTON, DC — The Federal Maritime Commission has announced compromise agreements recovering civil penalties in the amount of $748,000. The agreements were reached with a vessel-operating common carrier ("VOCC") and licensed and unlicensed ocean transportation intermediaries (AOTI) (both non-vessel-operating common carriers ("NVOCCs") and ocean freight forwarders). In concluding the compromise agreements, the parties did not admit any violations of the Act or the Commission's regulations. The compromise agreements resulted from investigations conducted by the Commission's area representatives located in Los Angeles, New York, South Florida, and Washington, D.C. Staff attorneys with the Bureau of Enforcement negotiated the compromise agreements.


OOCL, Hapag-Lloyd
rationalize joint service

HONG KONG — SLCS (St. Lawrence Co-ordinated Services) members, OOCL and Hapag-Lloyd, have announced they will rationalize their jointly-operated SLCS1 North Atlantic service/ GEX1 with the Canadian Gateway service of Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC), known as the Montreal Express 1. The first sailing of the new service will be the OOCL BELGIUM ETD Antwerp on July 30, 2009. The partners will deploy four vessels, OOCL BELGIUM (2,808 TEUs), Hapag-Lloyd’s MISSISSAUGA EXPRESS (2,808 TEUs), MSC SUEZ and MSC JORDAN (both 3,007 TEUS). Port rotation will be Montreal, Liverpool, Antwerp, Bremerhaven, Le Havre, Liverpool and Montreal. The other SLCS weekly service, SLCS2/ GEX2, covering Montreal, Hamburg and Antwerp, is not part of this rationalization and remains unchanged.


Port of Seattle not allowed
to use property for homeless camp

SEATTLE — The Port of Seattle reports it shares the concern for homeless citizens in the community, but regrets it is not able to accommodate the Nickelsville encampment’s request to use port property. When Nickelsville advocates approached the port earlier this month, port staff worked in good faith to review their request and communicate with them about potential solutions. Legally, the port says is has neither the authority in the housing area nor the ability to ‘donate’ property, as that would be contrary to state law for port authorities. In 2005, the Washington State Auditor’s Office (SAO) examined the port’s expenditures to community organizations, and their December 2005 report found the “port sometimes assists other organizations in the community or otherwise participates in community events in ways that are outside of its authority,” which ultimately constitutes a prohibited gift of public funds. In short, it is illegal for the Port of Seattle to provide this property for the encampment, and the port will not disobey the law.


Women's Shipping Club
seeks top boss nominations

PORTLAND — The Women's Shipping Club of Portland is seeking nominations of one leader or boss from the transportaion industry for their Boss of the Year award. The nominee need not be your own boss, or a boss at all, but should be a leader that inspires you. Nominees can be male or female; however, if they have ever won this award before, they are not eligible to win again! Who will you nominate for this year's Boss of the Year Award? The club needs your nomination letters no later than August 21, 2009. Include details of why you think your nominee deserves to win and make plans to join the club at their Awards Dinner on September 17th. All nominees will be honored with recognition at the event. Send in your letters to either Lisa@ChannelCoalition.com or to:
c/o Lisa Pomasl
Women's Shipping Club
PO Box 903
Clackamas, OR 97015
More details on times and location of the Awards Dinner on September 17th will be coming.


NEWS BULLETIN
Friday, July 24, 2009

CN temporarily pulls service
at Vancouver, BC terminals

VANCOUVER, BC — On July 13, CN temporarily withdrew rail service to three container terminals at Port Metro Vancouver. The terminals affected are Centerm and Vanterm in Burrard Inlet, and Fraser Surrey Docks on the Fraser River. CN has advised that all CN traffic to and from these terminals will be transported by container truck to Vancouver Intermodal Terminal (VIT) in Surrey until further notice. CN continues to provide rail service to Deltaport at Roberts Bank. Port Metro Vancouver is open for business, with no reported delays. The port reports it is actively engaged with terminal operators, transportation service providers and government agencies to ensure commercial competitiveness, service consistency, reliability and choice for port customers.


Panama Canal reports
third quarter metrics

PANAMA CITY — The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has released third quarter (Q3) operational metrics for fiscal year 2009. In Q3, Canal Waters Time (CWT), the average time it takes a vessel to transit the canal, including waiting time for passage, decreased significantly. Additionally, total transits and net tonnage decreased slightly. These metrics are based on operations from April through June 2009, the third quarter of the ACP's 2009 fiscal year, and are compared with Q3 of fiscal year 2008. Average CWT decreased 47.9 percent – to 19.96 hours from 38.31 hours. CWT for booked vessels (those ships holding reservations) decreased 26.5 percent – to 14.53 hours from 19.77 hours. In Transit Time (ITT) also decreased 26.6 percent – to 9.55 hours from 13.02 hours. The ITT begins when a vessel enters the first set of locks at either side of the canal and ends when the vessel departs the last set of locks at the opposite side. Efficient Canal operations and a slight decline in transits are likely causes for the decreases in CWT and ITT. Total canal transits decreased 6.4 percent – to 3,576 transits from 3,821. Transits of supers, larger ships that require greater time and navigation skills to transit the canal, declined 1.5 percent – to 1,815 transits from 1,842. Panama Canal/Universal Measurement System (PC/UMS) tonnage remained nearly constant with a 4.6 percent decline – to 73.7 million PC/UMS tons from 77.2 million PC/UMS tons.


Rail freight traffic
down during week

WASHINGTON, DC — The Association American Railroads has reported freight traffic on U.S. railroads continues to parallel the nation’s overall economic condition, as traffic remained down year over year for the week ended July 4, 2009. U.S railroads reported originating 241,240 cars, down 15.6 percent compared with the same week in 2008. Total volume on U.S. railroads for the week ending July 4 was estimated at 25.7 billion ton-miles, off 14.3 percent from the same week last year. Regionally, carloadings were down 11.1 percent in the West and 23.0 percent in the East. Intermodal volume of 169,290 trailers or containers was down 12.8 percent from the same week last year. Container volume fell 6.4 percent and trailer volume dropped 34.9 percent. Eighteen of 19 carload freight commodity groups were down from last year, with declines ranging from 3.3 percent for coal to 72.4 percent for metallic ores. The lone group showing an increase was grain-mill products, which was up 4.3 percent. For the first 26 weeks of 2009, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 6,806,892 carloads, down 19.2 percent from 2008; 4,816,358 trailers or containers, down 16.8 percent, and total volume of an estimated 723.7 billion ton-miles, down 18.3 percent.


COSCON joins Evergreen
in new China express service

TAIPEI — Evergreen Line and Cosco Container Lines (COSCON) will launch a new joint service, the China South East Asia Express Service (CSE), expected to take effect from Shanghai on July 26, 2009. The service will operate with four 2,100 TEU vessels. Evergreen will deploy one vessel and three ships will be supplied by COSCON. The port rotation is as follows: Shanghai - Dalian - Xingang - Qingdao - Ningbo - Manila (south) - Jakarta - Singapore - Tanjung Pelepas - Port Kelang - Shanghai.


NOAA asks mariners
to keep lookout for buoys

WASHINGTON, DC — NOAA’s National Weather Service is asking the marine community to help safeguard its offshore buoys — which provide meteorologists with critical data for weather and tsunami forecasts — following a series of incidents where buoys were damaged or cut from their moorings. Since November 2008, three weather buoys around the Hawaiian Islands have been damaged, and several tsunami buoys around the Pacific Rim stopped transmitting data after severe weather or commercial ships broke the mooring lines. Two weather buoys suffered serious damage and stopped sending data. A third weather buoy continues to transmit data, but has drifted thousands of miles to the west because of a cut mooring line. NOAA and the U.S. Coast Guard have repaired many of the buoys, and the remainder will be serviced as soon as ship schedules permit. NOAA buoys are easy to identify. All are painted bright colors and imprinted with "NOAA" and the station number. Operated and maintained by NOAA’s National Data Buoy Center, the buoys are continually monitored by an automated quality assurance program which immediately notifies technicians when data is lost.


NEWS BULLETIN
Thursday, July 23, 2009

Foss nets grant funds
to repower crew boats

SEATTLE — Foss Maritime Company will receive a portion of a $4 million air quality grant awarded to the Port of Long Beach from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to repower two crew boats in their Southern California fleet. Approximately $388,500 will go toward replacing the engines in the CARIBE ALLIANCE and CARIBE HORIZON that serve as crew boats for the company’s El Segundo and Pacific Area Lighterage (PAL) operations. Their existing engines, Detroit 12-71 Turbos and GM EMD 12-645-E2’s, will be replaced with Tier 2 certified engines, the best control technology currently available. The grant was awarded to the port to replace or retrofit aging technology with more efficient, less polluting technology, and is part of the $25 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to reduce diesel exhaust in California.


Rental car facility project
restarted at Sea-Tac Airport

SEATTLE — With an estimated 3,000 jobs connected to the project, the Port of Seattle, the City of SeaTac, Turner Construction and representatives from the Washington State Building & Construction Trades Council and King County Labor Council have officially re-started the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Consolidated Rental Car Facility at the site of the project. Construction on the $419 million, 23-acre site will generate more than 3,000 local, family-wage jobs and nearly $2 million in tax revenue for the City of SeaTac over the life of the project. At least 1,000 jobs are expected to be created by the end of 2009. The facility is scheduled to open in spring of 2012.


Crowley presents cadet
with seamanship award

JACKSONVILLE, FL — California Maritime Academy Cadet Samuel Thompson was presented Crowley's Deck Excellence and Seamanship Award during the academy's recent graduation ceremonies. Cadet Thompson, a marine transportation major, has proved himself as an exemplary cadet and future seaman, has served as squad academic and training leader, section academic and training leader, and company chief mate. As company chief mate, Cadet Thompson initiated and penned most of a new training manual for cadets, which focuses primarily on real-world and practical skills. He also was instrumental in starting an instructional website (www.deckskills.com) for cadets and professional mariners alike. The website includes tutorials and lessons in radar, celestial navigation, terrestrial navigation, among other topics.


Genco takes delivery
of new Capesize vessel

NEW YORK — Genco Shipping & Trading Limited has announced that it has taken delivery of the GENCO COMMODUS, a 170,500 dwt Capesize newbuilding. The GENCO COMMODUS is the seventh vessel to be delivered to the company under Genco's previously announced agreement on July 18, 2007 to acquire nine Capesize vessels from companies within the Metrostar Management Corporation group. The GENCO COMMODUS is expected to be delivered to its charterer, Morgan Stanley Capital Group Inc., on or about July 23, 2009 to commence a time charter for 23 to 25 months at a rate of $36,000 per day, less a five percent third party brokerage commission. Currently, Genco has approximately 68 percent of its fleet's estimated available days secured on contracts for the remainder of 2009 and 44 percent for 2010. Genco has drawn upon its amended 10-year, $1.4 billion revolving credit facility to finance the remaining balance for the GENCO COMMODUS. The company expects the delivery of two additional newbuilding vessels by the end of 2009 and intends to utilize the undrawn portion of its $1.4 billion revolving credit facility as well as cash flow from operations to fund these acquisitions.


Coast Guard volunteer
earns top Auxiliarist honor

SEATTLE — Coast Guard Auxiliarist Marilynn R. Leonard, a resident of Sequim, Wash., has been selected by the Commandant of the Coast Guard as the Auxiliarist of the year for 2008. The Auxiliary is a component of the Coast Guard comprised of civilian volunteers who donate their time and expertise to further Coast Guard missions. Since joining the organization in June 2006, Ms. Leonard has dedicated over 5,400 hours of service across several auxiliary mission areas, most notably serving as manager of the Citizens Action Network for the Strait of Juan de Fuca, a unique organization that monitors local coasts and waterways to increase Coast Guard Maritime Domain Awareness. She brought enthusiasm to all her work and achieved an impressive list of qualifications within the organization, including vessel examiner, small boat program visitor, instructor and public affairs officer. She has also worked with a wide variety of photo mapping projects used extensively by many federal and state agencies, established a new Auxiliary detachment in Forks, Wash., and been an instrumental force in recruiting over seven new members for the Auxiliary. Ms. Leonard will be recognized for her exemplary performance during ceremonies at the Coast Guard Auxiliary National Conference in Chicago on August 29th, 2009. She currently focuses much of her volunteer time as the assistant public affairs officer for Coast Guard Group Port Angeles.


NEWS BULLETIN
Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Corps awards final contract
for Columbia River channel work

PORTLAND — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Portland District, awarded the final contract for the Columbia River Channel Improvement Project to J.E. McAmis, Inc., July 17. The nearly $52 million contract includes $26.6 million of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds, along with 2009 appropriated and matching sponsor funds. According to the contractor, the work is estimated to create about 50 new jobs. Work will begin in mid-August with the removal of 1.7 to 2.5 million cubic yards of material to deepen Columbia River miles 65 to 67, near Longview, Wash. There is also a one mile section of basalt between river miles 87 and 88 near St. Helens, Ore., that must be blasted and then dredged. The blasting will occur between November 2009 and February 2010, and create between 250,000 and 500,000 cubic yards of material to dredge. The project should be complete by December 2010. While most of the navigation channel has been deepened from 40 to 43 feet, these portions that are composed of more rock than sediment will be dredged to between 49 and 51 feet to allow for future maintenance using typical dredging equipment. This work will close out the Columbia River Channel Improvement project, a two decade-long effort to deepen the 103-mile navigation channel allowing larger, deeper draft ships and heavier-loaded vessels access to inland ports throughout the Pacific Northwest.


Celebration marks start of
Columbia River environmental project

PORTLAND — Public and private partners from Oregon and Washington gathered at the Port of Portland’s Terminal 6 on July 21, to celebrate an agreement designed to enhance the sustainability of the regional economy through management of diesel emissions from multimodal freight transport along the Columbia River. Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski and Washington Governor Christine Gregoire designated the Columbia River Clean Diesel Project as a priority for action and appointed Jim Jacks, a Washington State Legislator, and Jay Waldron, an Environmental Attorney at Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt and the former president of the Port of Portland’s board of commissioners, as co-conveners for the group. The collaborators on this bi-state project include a mix of agencies, freight transportation companies, and local ports.


Crowley honors midshipman
with maritime security award

JACKSONVILLE, FL — United States Merchant Marine Academy Midshipman Kristen A. Hetsko was recently presented the Crowley Maritime Security Enhancement Award. Ed Alford, Crowley's security director, presented the award to Midshipman Hetsko during the USMMA's awards convocation for the Class of 2009. The Crowley award is given to the student who has demonstrated an exceptional interest in a career in port, maritime or transportation security. A native of Killingworth, Conn., Midshipman Hetsko majored in logistics and intermodal transportation and graduated cum laude from the USMMA and served as platoon commander in the academy's midshipmen regiment. She was also a member of the academy's varsity women's basketball team, where she placed second overall in all-time points scored; first in three pointers made; and first in three pointer field goal percentage. She was the 2009 winner of the Julie A. Berke Award presented to the most outstanding senior female athlete at the academy.


Pieces coming together
on new Boeing freighter

EVERETT — Boeing has taken a major step closer toward completing the assembly of the first 747-8 Freighter as mechanics at the factory in Everett, loaded the forward and aft fuselage sections to join with the wing and center section. The 747-8 Freighter is 250 feet, 2 inches (76.3 m) long, which is 18 feet and 4 inches (5.6 m) longer than the 747-400 Freighter. The stretch provides customers with 16 percent more revenue cargo volume compared to its predecessor. That translates to four additional main-deck pallets and three additional lower-hold pallets. Boeing has secured 78 orders from leading cargo operators for the new 747-8 Freighter. Cargolux, Nippon Cargo Airlines, AirBridgeCargo Airlines, Atlas Air, Cathay Pacific, Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, Emirates SkyCargo, Guggenheim and Korean Air all have placed orders for the airplane.


Iceland Air announces
Sea-Tac to Reykjavik flights

SEATTLE — On July 22, Icelandair, a new carrier for Sea-Tac, will begin service to Reykjavik with four non-stop flights a week. Icelandair will be the only Nordic carrier serving the West Coast and Seattle will be Icelandair's only West Coast gateway. As of July 31st, Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) will no longer operate flights to and from Sea-Tac Airport. Icelandair flights to Reykjavik will depart on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. The seven hour and 15 minute flight will provide connections to Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm, London, Helsinki, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Paris and other European cities. The return flight takes seven hours and 45 minutes and is scheduled on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays. Icelandair has announced plans to add a fifth flight in 2010.


NEWS BULLETIN
Monday, July 20, 2009

Pilot receives jail time
for COSCO BUSAN incident

WASHINGTON, DC — John Joseph Cota, the pilot who caused the COSCO BUSAN, a 900-foot long container ship, to collide with the San Francisco Bay Bridge and discharge approximately 53,000 gallons of oil into San Francisco Bay, has been sentenced to serve 10 months in federal prison by U.S. District Court Judge Susan Illston for the Northern District of California, the Justice Department announced. Mr. Cota, who was a licensed bar pilot at the time of the collision, gave commands that caused the 65,131-ton Hong Kong-registered ship to collide with the bridge on Nov. 7, 2007. He was sentenced according to an agreement in which he pleaded guilty to negligently causing discharge of a harmful quantity of oil in violation of the Clean Water Act (CWA), as amended by the Oil Spill Act of 1990 - a law passed in the wake of the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster - and to violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, by causing the death of protected species of migratory birds. In papers filed in court, prosecutors told the judge that Captain Cota should receive a sentence of incarceration because he was "guilty of far more than a mere slip-up or an otherwise innocuous mistake that yielded unforeseeably grave damage. Rather, he made a series of intentional and negligent acts and omissions, both before and leading up to the incident that produced a disaster that, as widespread as it was, could have had even worse consequences."


Vessel marks maiden voyage
at Port of Vancouver, USA

VANCOUVER, USA — The Port of Vancouver USA welcomed the CORELLA ARROW, commanded by Capt. Davor Perusina of Croatia, on its maiden voyage to the port on June 18, 2009. Capt. Perusina and his 24-member crew were welcomed to Vancouver by Jay Hamachek, director of North American & business development for Great Western Malting, Chris Cummins, president of Pacific Northwest Ship and Cargo Services; Marlin Pulliam, superintendent for PortsAmerica, along with port representatives Lars Uglum, Julianna Marler, Rick Cline, Dave Hurt, Randy McCaleb, and Debbie Taylor. The CORELLA ARROW was built in Japan and launched May 11, 2009. It is 738 feet in length and has deadweight capacity of 72,863 metric tons. The crew for the vessel’s first visit to the Port of Vancouver USA were from the Philippines, Croatia, Poland and India. The CORELLA ARROW is owned by Kristian Gerhard Jebsen Skipsrederi A/S and operated by Gearbulk Shipping. PNW Ship and Cargo Services (USA) Inc. is the agent for Gearbulk Shipping. The ship loaded 4,400 metric tons of barley malt while in port. Great Western Malting has been a long-term industrial tenant at the port and has been exporting barley malt in bulk to South America, South Africa and Central America since 2008.


Port of Vancouver, BC event
raises money for local projects

VANCOUVER, BC — The 10th Annual Port Fundraising Gala held on June 22, raised $130,000, for projects such as Grandview Elementary's Community Garden. Port Metro Vancouver hosted the event along with DP World, TSI Terminal Systems Inc., and Western Stevedoring. The event featured a live and silent auction, entertainment by Best of Worst, and Emcee Jason Pires of CTV. Beneficiaries of Gala proceeds include Grandview Elementary School, Harvest Project, and Mission Possible. These organizations provide much-needed programs and services to communities within the port, including a community garden project at Grandview Elementary used to teach students about sustainability, health & wellness, and nutrition. Since 1999, the port community has raised more than $620,000.


Maritime Administration sells
pair of vessels for recycling

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration has sold two ships for recycling to Esco Ltd. of Brownsville, Texas for a total of $171,452. RESOLUTE, a partial container// breakbulk ship built in 1980, brought a purchase price of $90,726. RESOLUTE is currently moored at the James River Reserve Fleet site in Newport News, Va. GULF FARMER, a breakbulk cargo ship built in 1964, brought a purchase price of $80,726. GULF FARMER is at the Beaumont Reserve Fleet site in Texas. Both ships, which are to leave their respective fleet sites within 30 days, are to be recycled, which is the most common method of ship disposal used by the Maritime Administration. When a ship is recycled the recycler often salvages and sells metal and other materials. Because the worldwide market for such materials fluctuates rapidly and often, the Maritime Administration finds the best bargain for the taxpayer by offering the ships for sale first, and if there are no buyers, paying for their disposal. The Maritime Administration stores ships at three National Defense Reserve Fleet sites: the James River site, the Beaumont Reserve Fleet in Texas, and the Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet in California.


Coast Guard presents award
for environmental accomplishments

SEATTLE — The Coast Guard recently awarded a Washington State employee for her environmental accomplishments at a ceremony held in Olympia, Wash. Capt. Suzanne Englebert, captain of the port, Puget Sound, presented the Coast Guard Meritorious Public Service Award to Melissa Montgomery, program manager for Washington State Department of Natural Resources’ Derelict Vessel Removal Program, at the Natural Resources Rotunda Building. Ms. Montgomery earned the award for her work protecting the environment of Puget Sound. Ms. Montgomery is credited with creating a system to identify and remove derelict and abandoned vessels. These vessels pose a safety risk to navigation and many contain pollutants that can harm the environment. Montgomery’s work resulted in being evaluated and harmful pollutants removed from 50 vessels . The vessels were scrapped and recycled in a safe and environmentally friendly manner. Ms. Montgomery’s leadership was pivotal in managing the removal of the vessel Cactus, an environmental and navigation danger, abandoned in the area for 11 years. The Coast Guard Meritorious Public Service Award is the second highest award given to private citizens, groups or organizations. The Meritorious Public Service Award is approved by a regional Admiral and is given for substantial contribution that measurably added to the Coast Guard's enviormental missions.


NEWS BULLETIN
Friday, July 17, 2009

Stimulus funds help complete
Port of Tacoma road project

TACOMA — Port of Tacoma Commissioners have approved a $21.8 million contract to build the final piece of the Lincoln Avenue Grade Separation. This key freight transportation project includes an overpass to carry trucks and other vehicles over busy rail lines in the Tacoma Tideflats area. The 2,200-foot-long overpass will add three lanes of roadway over four sets of railroad tracks. Truck queues at the current at-grade crossing can last up to 45 minutes behind trains serving the Port’s two main intermodal yards. The port has completed three surface streets and relocated utilities to support the overall project. The final piece, the overpass itself, remained unfunded until the port received $15.4 million in March from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds. The $53.2 million project has received funding since 2002 from several local, state and federal sources. The port expects to pay about $17.9 million of the total.


Crystal takes top spot
for 14 years running

TOKYO — For a record 14th year, Crystal Cruises wholly owed subsidiary of NYK has been voted “World’s Best Large-Ship Cruise Line” by the readers of Travel + Leisure magazine. The ultra-luxury line is the only cruise line, resort or hotel to have won the award each year since the award's inception. Crystal Cruises’ 2009 World’s Best Score of 88.94 is the highest of any cruise line – large or small. A Crystal cruise is the only vacation experience to have been voted #1 by Travel + Leisure readers for 14 years. The World’s Best Awards are featured in the magazine’s August 2009 issue based on a first quarter 2009 survey of thousands of world travelers. Subscribers were only permitted one vote each, and were asked to rate cruise lines on cabins, food, service, itineraries/destinations, activities and value, plus an optional vote for families.


Rail freight traffic down
during month of June

WASHINGTON, DC — The Association of American Railroads has reported that U.S. railroads originated 1,039,889 carloads of freight in June 2009, down 19.7 percent with 255,668 fewer carloads, compared with June 2008. U.S. intermodal rail traffic – comprising trailers and containers on flat cars that are not included in carload figures – totaled 755,000 units in June 2009, down 18.2 percent compared with the same period last year with 168,031 fewer trailers and containers. For the first six months of 2009, total U.S. rail carloadings were down 19.5 percent (1,594,411 carloads) to 6,579,294 carloads, while intermodal traffic was down 17.0 percent (950,147 units) to 4,647,068 trailers and containers. Of the 19 major commodity categories tracked by the AAR, 18 saw carload declines in June. The catch-all “all other” category was up slightly in June. In June, the biggest carload declines were coal (down 7.9 percent, or 42,762 carloads); motor vehicles and equipment (down 50.5 percent, or 36,598 carloads); metals and metal products (down 59.8 percent, or 32,253 carloads); and crushed stone and gravel (down 25.2 percent, or 21,840 carloads).


Vessel engineers plead guilty
to dumping untreated waste

WASHINGTON, DC — Panagiotis Stamatakis, the chief engineer on the Cyprus-flagged M/V MYRON N, and the second engineer, Dimitrios Papadakis, both citizens of Greece, have pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Trenton, N.J., to using falsified records that concealed improper discharges of untreated bilge waste from the cargo ship, the Justice Department announced. District Court Judge Peter G. Sheridan for the District of New Jersey scheduled sentencing for Sept. 8, 2009. Mr. Stamatakis and Mr. Papadakis each faces up to six years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The government's investigation began in September 2008, when inspectors from the U.S. Coast Guard conducted an examination of the MYRON N, following the ship's arrival in Gravesend Anchorage, N.Y. and subsequently in the Port of Newark, N.J. The MYRON N is a 38,337 gross ton dry bulk carrier vessel operated and managed by Dalnave Navigation Inc., which is incorporated in the Republic of Liberia. The inspections uncovered evidence that crewmembers had improperly handled and disposed of the ship's untreated bilge waste, using a pipe to bypass its pollution control system. To conceal these activities, Mr. Stamatakis and Mr. Papadakis knowingly failed to record those discharges in the ship's official oil record book.


Gun salute celebrates
Coast Guard command change

SEATTLE — A ceremonial firing of cannons signaled the change of command for the Coast Guard's 13th District at Pier 36 in Seattle, July 14. The ceremony, presided over by Vice Adm. Jody A. Breckenridge, commander of the Coast Guard's Pacific Area, was held at Pier 36, Sector Seattle, as part of a time-honored maritime tradition. In the ceremony, Rear Adm. Gary T. Blore relieved Rear Adm. John P. Currier, who was awarded the Legion of Merit for his accomplishments as the 13th Coast Guard District commander.and promoted to Vice Admiral at the conclusion of the ceremony. Adm. Currier, a native of Westbrook, Maine, was selected for vice admiral and nominated to be the Coast Guard chief of staff by the Commandant of the Coast Guard, Adm. Thad Allen. Gun salutes originated as a friendly gesture from one ship to honor another. When a cannon was fired, it partially disarmed the ship, so non-combat firing of a cannon showed respect and trust. The number of guns fired indicated the rank of the individual in command being honored. A 15-gun salute was fired Tuesday for Vice Adm. Breckenridge, commander of the Coast Guard Pacific Area.


NEWS BULLETIN
Thursday, July 16, 2009

Washington governor celebrates
ports' efforts to reduce emissions

TACOMA — Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire recently joined Bill Deaver, chief executive officer for Totem Ocean Trailer Express, Inc. at the Port of Tacoma, to celebrate the completion of the first round of projects to reduce diesel emissions at area ports funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. With $121,000 in ARRA funds, TOTE retrofitted 25 yard trucks at its Tacoma facility with exhaust devices that will reduce tailpipe particles by up to 65 percent per vehicle. The TOTE project created one position, and funded two additional full-time jobs. eagle Marine Services at the Port of Seattle has also completed work to retrofit 19 yard trucks with the exhaust devices. Total cost for the work completed at both ports is $218,000. In all, the state Department of Ecology will distribute $1.2 million in ARRA funds to the ports of Seattle, Tacoma and Vancouver USA to reduce diesel emissions. Work is already under way to retrofit 119 pieces of cargo-handling equipment, with work expected to begin soon on an additional 276 pieces of equipment.


Panama Canal Authority
names locks contractor

PANAMA CITY — The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has announced that Consortium Grupo Unidos por el Canal will design and build the waterway’s new set of locks, the most anticipated project of the Panama Canal Expansion Program. Grupo Unidos por el Canal, composed of Sacyr Vallehermoso S.A., Impregilo S.p.A., Jan De Nul n.v. and Constructora Urbana, S.A., was one of three consortia vying for the largest and most important contract under the canal’s expansion. The base price of US $3,118,880,001.00 submitted by Grupo Unidos por el Canal did not exceed the ACP’s owner’s allocated price of US $3,481,000,000.00. The ACP will issue an “order to proceed” for the work to commence. The date for this will be determined in due course. The ACP expects the winning consortium to begin work no later than 42 days from the awarding.


Port Tracker report finds
box numbers on increase

WASHINGTON, DC — Import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports climbed back above the one million mark for the first time in four months in May but is continuing to see double-digit declines compared with last year, according to the monthly Port Tracker report released today by the National Retail Federation and IHS Global Insight. U.S. ports surveyed handled 1.04 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units in May, the most recent month for which actual numbers are available. That was up five percent from April and ended a three-month streak of numbers below one million but was down 20 percent from April 2008. After February (839,492 TEU), March (970,949 TEU) and April (990,632 TEU), the figure was the fourth-lowest since the 901,497 seen in February 2004, and marked the 23rd month in a row to see a year-over-year decline.


Pair of mariners plead guilty
to breaking pollution laws

WASHINGTON, DC — A Greek citizen, Panagiotis Lekkas, the captain of the bulk cargo ship the M/V THEOTOKOS, has pleaded guilty to four felony counts in federal court in New Orleans for violating anti-pollution laws, ship safety laws and obstructing a U.S. Coast Guard investigation, the Justice Department announced. Additionally, a Philippine citizen, Charles P. Posas, the second highest officer onboard the THEOTOKOS, pleaded guilty to two felony counts of lying to the Coast Guard and violating recordkeeping laws aimed at reducing the risk of marine invasive species. Mr. Posas is the first individual ever charged under the anti-invasive species law, a law designed to mitigate the introduction of marine invasive species into waters of the United States. Aquatic nuisance species are non-indigenous species that threaten the diversity or abundance of native species or the ecological stability of infested waters. Capt. Lekkas, who was the highest ranking officer aboard the ship, pleaded guilty to one count of violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships, one count of obstruction of justice and two counts of violating the Ports and Waterways Safety Act. Mr. Posas, who served as the vessel's chief officer, pleaded guilty to one count of false statement and one count of violating the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance and Prevention Control Act. The vessel is owned by Liberia-based Mirage Navigation Corporation and is managed by Polembros Shipping Limited. Sentencing for both individual defendants is set for Oct. 14, 2009.


Freight transportation index
falls again during May

WASHINGTON, DC — The Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI) fell 0.6 percent in May from its April level, declining for the third consecutive month to the lowest level in 12 years, the U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reports. The May decline was the smallest of the three consecutive decreases. BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that the May decrease was the ninth decline in the Freight TSI in the last 10 months. The index has declined 14.8 percent in that 10-month period. The May Freight TSI of 94.0 is the lowest level since June 1997 when it was 92.4. The Freight TSI is down 16.7 percent from its historic peak of 112.9 reached in May 2006. The 6.3 percent decline in the first five months of 2009 was the largest in the last decade, exceeding the 5.3 percent decline for the first five months of 2000. The Freight TSI measures the month-to-month changes in the output of services provided by the for-hire freight transportation industries. The index consists of data from for-hire trucking, rail, inland waterways, pipelines and air freight.


NEWS BULLETIN
Wednesday, July 15, 2009

New Crowley heavy-lift barge
launched from Grunderson facility

PORTLAND — With Crowley's vessel construction boom in full swing, shipyard employees, Crowley personnel and distinguished guests paused this weekend to welcome the newest heavy-lift deck barge to the Crowley fleet - the 455-6 - sixth in a series of heavy-lift deck barges slated to be built and put into service by 2013. Against the backdrop of a Hawaiian-themed christening, Sandi Gresham, the wife of Bruce Gresham of Heerema Marine Contractors in Houston, Texas christened the barge with a bottle of champagne, launching it into the Willamette River at the Gunderson Marine shipyard in Portland. The barge is the third heavy-lift deck barge christened by Crowley this year, but is definitely not the last. In September, the company is scheduled to take delivery of the 455-7 and the barge 455-8 by the end of 2009 - bringing the total to five heavy-lift deck barge deliveries this year alone.


Corps wants public input
on Rogue River dredging plans

PORTLAND — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is seeking public comments on an updated environmental assessment of annual maintenance dredging in the Rogue River. The Rogue River entrance and navigation channel and the Gold Beach boat basin require maintenance dredging of up to 97,000 cubic yards of material per year. This dredging clears shoaling and sedimentation in the navigation channel providing a more consistent channel for all vessels entering and leaving the river. Dredged material will be placed at the approved ocean dredge material disposal site, in an upland rehandling area, or in the south beach surf zone adjacent to the Gold Beach airport. The draft environmental assessment is available for public review and comment at http://www.nwp.usace.army.mil/pm/e/en_plan_assess.asp. Questions or comments regarding the environmental documents should be directed to Dr. Jan Stuart at (503) 808-4543, or mailed to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Portland District, Attn: CENWP-PM-E (Stuart), P.O. Box 2946, Portland, OR, 97208-2946. Comments must be received by August 8, and refer to public notice number CENWP-PM-E-09-07, Maintenance Dredging for the Rogue River coastal navigation project, Curry County, Ore.


Seattle firms in spotlight
for cleaner manufacturing

SEATTLE — Acting U.S. Commerce Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing and Services Mary Saunders led a tour of four Seattle-area manufacturing facilities as part of the department’s Sustainability 360 initiative. The tour, Sustainability 360: An Aerospace Supply Chain Event, is designed to showcase the benefits of sustainable manufacturing throughout an aerospace manufacturing supply chain. The event began with a presentation at Puget Sound Energy, a local utility company in Bellevue, and continued with site visits to Tyee Aircraft, Goodrich Aerostructures, and the Boeing Company. The tour highlighted the various gains U.S. companies have reaped as a result of incorporating cleaner, more resource-efficient technologies and product “life-cycle” approaches in their manufacturing processes.


Tsakos nets three-year deal
for suezmax tanker ARCTIC

ATHENS — Tsakos Energy Navigation Limited (TEN) has announced a three-year time charter with profit sharing for the 2007-built double hull suezmax tanker ARCTIC. The charter is structured with a minimum rate and a 50/50 profit share up to an agreed maximum rate. Prior to this charter the vessel operated in the spot market. The ARCTIC charter began in early July 2009. The gross proceeds from the charter, assuming only the minimum rate, are expected to exceed $25 million over the corresponding period. Following this charter extension, TEN's fixed employment for 2009 and 2010 is 66 percent and 48 percent, respectively. Assuming profit-sharing charters generate only the minimum for the remaining operating days in 2009, TEN expects to earn at least $130 million in incremental gross revenues. For 2010, based on the same assumptions, the minimum gross revenue already secured is estimated at $180 million.


Port of Camas-Washougal
collecting shoes for needy

WASHOUGAL, WA — The Port of Camas-Washougal has announced an initiative to supply new shoes for needy families and children at local schools. In conjunction with the Interfaith Treasure House, a local charity, the port's "Shoes for School" program is designed to supply new shoes to needy students at local schools. Creatively decorated containers are located in the lobby of the port offices at 24 South ‘A' Street in Washougal to receive the donations of new shoes. According to program organizer Jennifer Rilatos from the port, all sizes of shoes up to a size 10 in men's are needed for school-age children. The deadline for donations is Thursday, August 27, 2009. On Friday, August 28, 2009 all of the new shoe donations will be distributed to needy children through Interfaith Treasure House.


NEWS BULLETIN
Monday, July 13, 2009

Washington Ferries Division
lays out long range plans

OLYMPIA — Washington State Department of Transportation Ferries Division (WSF) reports it will purchase five new vessels over the next five years as part of a long-range plan that will guide its services and investments through 2030. The plan assumes that current levels of service remain as they are today with minor improvements as new vessels are acquired to replace retiring vessels. Other plan highlights include: Purchase 10 new vessels to replace retired and retiring vessels; Preserve and maintain existing terminals and vessels; Investigate new technology for vehicle reservations systems at Anacortes/Sidney B.C. and Port Townsend/Keystone, and to look at options to incorporate reservations on other routes; Make transit supportive investments at select terminals The plan identifies a net funding gap of $3.3 billion over the next 22 years with most of that deficit in the capital program. WSF will continue to work with the Legislature to identify a sustainable funding source for the ferry system.


IMO Council taps seafarers
as theme for 2010 Maritime Day

LONDON — The Council of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), meeting for its 102nd session in London, agreed that next year's theme for World Maritime Day will be "2010: Year of the Seafarer", endorsing a proposal from IMO Secretary-General Efthimios E. Mitropoulos. The theme - to be celebrated throughout the year and also at a World Maritime Day parallel event in Argentina - was selected to give IMO and the international maritime community the opportunity to pay tribute to the world's seafarers for their unique contribution to society and in recognition of the risks they shoulder in the execution of their duties in an often hostile environment. In proposing it, Secretary-General Mitropoulos said that "the unique hazards confronting the 1.5 million seafarers of the world - including pirate attacks, unwarranted detention and abandonment - coupled with the predicted looming shortage of ships' officers, make it ever more incumbent to take immediate and effective action to forestall a situation from developing in which ships are not manned with sufficient skilled personnel". The theme complements IMO's ongoing "Go to Sea!" campaign to attract new entrants to the shipping industry, which was launched in November 2008 in association with the International Labour Organization, the "Round Table" of shipping industry organizations and the International Transport Workers' Federation.


Port of Bremerton names Ware
community outreach advisor

BREMERTON — The Port of Bremerton has announced that it has hired Scott Ware, former editor of the Kitsap Sun, to provide community outreach expertise as it continues its efforts to build public trust and involvement in port affairs. Mr. Ware will advise port staff on ways to reach out to the community and earn public confidence in the port through a commitment to openness, transparency and accountability. He also will provide counsel to the port in developing sustainability strategies for its facilities and for its economic development initiatives. Since leaving the Kitsap Sun at the end of last year, mr. Ware has been engaged in advanced study in sustainable business at Bainbridge Graduate Institute. Mr. Ware agreed to a six-month personal services agreement with the port for $40,000, paid for from funds for a budgeted position that has gone unfilled. His title will be Special Advisor for Community Outreach and Sustainability.


Lockheed Martin team
lays keel for third LCS

MARINETTE, WI — A Lockheed Martin-led industry team held a keel-laying ceremony at Marinette Marine's shipyard July 11, for FORT WORTH, the U.S. Navy's third Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). The LCS is an agile warship designed to operate in the world's coastal waters and provide the Navy with fast, maneuverable and shallow-draft ships aimed at maximizing mission flexibility. In March 2009, the Navy awarded the Lockheed Martin team a fixed price incentive fee contract to construct FORT WORTH, which will be delivered in 2012. The team's first LCS, USS FREEDOM, was commissioned in Milwaukee by the Navy in November 2008. The Lockheed Martin-led LCS team includes naval architect Gibbs & Cox, ship builders Marinette Marine Corporation, a Fincantieri company, and Bollinger Shipyards, as well as domestic and international teammates.


Crowley moving Royal Ballet
for performances in Cuba

HAVANA — Beginning this week hundreds and possibly even thousands of Cubans will have the opportunity to see world-class dancers from The Royal Ballet, Great Britain's largest and most prestigious ballet company, as they perform in Cuba's two most iconic theaters, the Gran Teatro de la Habana, Sala Garcia Lorca and the Karl Marx Teatro. The historic cultural exchange for the ballet company began weeks ago, as Crowley personnel put the transportation details together to get the eight 40-foot containers from Washington, D.C.'s Kennedy Center to Port Everglades, Fla. On July 6, they were loaded aboard Crowley's container ship, the ELB CARRIER, for their one-day journey to Cuba. The eight containers carried a variety of items for the ballet performances, including costumes, stage equipment, sets, scenery and props. Crowley is authorized to ship licensed cargo to Cuba. Currently, Crowley sails to Havana, Cuba from Port Everglades and Jacksonville, Fla. as an alternate port every week. Eligible commodities for export to Cuba are detailed under Section 902(1) of the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000.


NEWS BULLETIN
Friday, July 10, 2009

Seattle port board Oks
Duwamish restoration plan

SEATTLE — Port of Seattle Commissioners this week adopted the Lower Duwamish River Habitat Restoration Plan, which provides a framework on how port-owned portions of Duwamish River shoreline will combine commercial and residential areas with natural habitat. The plan underwent a lengthy public outreach process spanning from March 2008 to January 2009, and included a broad coalition of community stakeholders, which included a wide range of interests that have been in the area for decades. The study area for the plan is the 4.6 miles of navigable river extending upstream from Harbor Island. It includes port-owned shoreline sections as well as the upland port terminal properties. After extensive community outreach, the plan identified 31 potential habitat restoration sites along the river, and represents almost 60 percent of Duwamish shoreline designated for habitat. The Port of Seattle chose to undertake this project over a year ago to provide leadership amongst river stakeholders, with the goal of reconciling the needs for habitat creation and protection with the commercial needs of this working waterfront. To view the latest version of the plan, go to: www.portseattle.org/downloads/community/environment/Final_MP_book_20090116.pdf


Greenbrier releases
third quarter numbers

LAKE OSWEGO, OR — The Greenbrier Companies has reported results for its fiscal third quarter ended May 31, 2009. Revenue for the quarter was $244 million, down $138 million, or 36 percent, versus the prior year's third quarter. Earnings before special impairment charges for the quarter were $.6 million, $.03 per diluted share, compared to net earnings of $8.1 million, or $.49 per diluted share, in the prior year's third quarter. Results for the third quarter of 2009 include pre-tax special charges of $55.7 million ($51.1 million, net of tax), or $3.03 per share, for the impairment of a portion of the company's goodwill. Results for the third quarter also include costs of $0.9 million pre-tax, related to severance costs associated with reductions in work force and interest rate swap breakage costs. In addition, foreign currency translation losses of $2.5 million pre-tax were realized during the quarter. EBITDA before special charges for the quarter was $20.3 million, or 8.3 percent of revenues, compared to $34.5 million, or 9.0 percent of revenues in the third quarter of 2008.


Boeing announces purchase
of Vought Aircraft Industries

SEATTLE — Boeing has announced that it has agreed to acquire the business and operations conducted by Vought Aircraft Industries at its South Carolina facility, where Vought builds a key structure for Boeing's 787 Dreamliner airplane. The Vought facility, located in North Charleston, performs fabrication and assembly of structures and systems installation of 787 aft fuselage sections, which are made primarily of composite materials. After the transaction, Vought will continue its work on many Boeing programs, including other components of the 787, as well as structures and components on the 737, 747, 767, 777, C-17 and V-22 through operations located elsewhere.


US rail freight traffic tally
heads down during week

WASHINGTON, DC — Freight traffic on U.S. railroads remained down for the week ended June 20 compared with the same period last year, the Association of American Railroads reports. U.S railroads reported originating 261,717 cars, down 17.7 percent from the same week in 2008. Regionally, carloadings were down 11.9 percent in the West and 25.2 percent in the East. Intermodal volume of 187,759 trailers or containers was down 17.8 percent from the same week last year. Container volume fell 12 percent and trailer volume dropped 39.0 percent. Total volume on U.S. railroads for the week ending June 20 was estimated at 27.7 billion ton-miles, off 16.6 percent from the same week last year. Eighteen of 19 carload freight commodity groups were down from last year, with declines ranging from 1.8 percent for farm products other than grain to 65.4 percent for metallic ores. The lone group showing an increase was the catch-all category labeled "all other carloads" which was up 11.9 percent. For the first 24 weeks of 2009, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 6,323,360 carloads, down 19.4 percent from 2008; 4,458,136 trailers or containers, down 16.9 percent; and total volume of an estimated 671.0 billion ton-miles, down 18.3 percent.


Top Ships redelivers
MT RELENTLESS to owners

ATHENS — TOP Ships Inc., a global provider of marine transportation services, has announced it has redelivered the MT RELENTLESS (DWT 47,081) to its owners and paid a termination fee of $2.5 million. The termination fee and redelivery of the vessel were part of the termination agreement signed in April, 2009. This was the last leased vessel in TOP Ships' fleet.


NEWS BULLETIN
Thursday, July 9, 2009

Port of Astoria nearly finished
with Pier 2 North Face improvements

ASTORIA — Utilizing a $932,000 Connect II grant from the State of Oregon, a majority of work on upgrading the deep water berth at Port of Astoria Pier 2 North Face has been completed. Work included installation of piling and replacing the concrete reinforced deck. Upgrading this berth has regained approximately 425 feet of docking space and the work was completed by Bergerson Construction Company. Improvements to the Chinook Building have also been completed.
The property has been vacant since 2006 when plans were unfolding to develop the Astoria Conference Center. The Conference Center is no longer a viable option, so the Port of Astoria commission has directed executive director Jack Crider to proceed with the improvements. New and returning tenants to the building include Astoria Real Estate, Astoria Tax Consultants, Ray Raihala/Grange Insurance Group, Tiki Charters, World Class Fishing, and soon the managerial offices for the Bridgewater Bistro. The next phase of improvements will focus on the adjacent Thunderbird building, former location of Red Lion’s SeaFare Restaurant. That building has been vacant since 2003 and contains a commercial kitchen, waterfront dining room and lounge, as well as coffee shop.


Best Value proposal named
for Panama Canal upgrades

PANAMA CITY — After months of technical review, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has determined the “best value” proposal for the new set of locks expansion contract. Consortium Grupo Unidos por el Canal composed of Sacyr Vallehermoso S.A., Impregilo S.p.A., Jan De Nul n.v. and Constructora Urbana, S.A. garnered the highest total points for its combined technical and price scores. Three world-renowned consortia competed to win the largest and most important contract under the Canal’s Expansion Program. In a public ceremony, the ACP first presented the scores obtained from the technical evaluations and opened the price proposals submitted by all three consortia. Displayed on large video screens for the audience to view, the ACP opened the sealed price proposals and revealed the technical scores – all done in the presence of a public notary and the ACP’s outside auditing firm. The ACP then calculated a final weighted score – constituting 55 percent for the technical proposal and 45 percent for the price submission – live and on-screen. The points for the price proposal and technical evaluation from each consortium were then combined and the highest total score became the “best value” offer.


Alaska Airlines testing scheme
to improve approaches at Sea-Tac

SEATTLE — This summer Alaska Airlines began testing next-generation flight procedures at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac) that will allow the airline and its sister carrier, Horizon Air, to reduce their environmental impact during airport approaches. Dubbed "Greener Skies," the project in cooperation with the Port of Seattle, The Boeing Company and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is focused on using satellite-based flight guidance technology pioneered by Alaska Airlines to descend more efficiently and reduce aircraft fuel consumption, emissions and noise in the Puget Sound region. The airline is seeking FAA approval for the procedures, which could ultimately be used by all properly equipped carriers at Sea-Tac. Testing began June 16 on an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-700 aircraft during a noncommercial flight. Using satellite guidance technology called Required Navigation Performance (RNP), the plane flew a consistent and controlled approach to Sea-Tac with pinpoint accuracy, reducing flight-path length, ground noise and greenhouse-gas emissions, and saving time and fuel.


Evergreen ship set to monitor
greenhouse gas emissions at sea

TAIPEI — As part of its goal to retain a leadership role in ensuring a sustainable maritime industry, an Evergreen Marine Corp. container ship has set sail as part of a project to measure and monitor the distribution of greenhouse gases in the Pacific Ocean. The EVER ULTRA is the first commercial marine vessel equipped to measure marine hydrocarbon and halocarbon emissions and is part of an international Pacific Greenhouse Gases Measurement (PGGM) project. Taiwanese scientists at National Central University with the cooperation of Evergreen Marine Corp., the National Science Council (NSC), the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) and the University of Cambridge initiated the PGGM project in 2008. The project will combine data from Taiwan's FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC satellite. The FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC program is an international collaboration between Taiwan and the United States that uses a constellation of six remote sensing micro-satellites to collect atmospheric data for weather prediction and for ionosphere, climate and gravity research. The US$70 million 980-foot-long vessel 5364 TEU EVER ULTRA is the first of three Evergreen ships that will participate in the project, with the second scheduled to sail to the Atlantic July 24, according to NCU.


General Dynamics Electric Boat
nets Navy submarine repair deal

GROTON, CT — General Dynamics Electric Boat has been awarded a $21.6 million contract modification by the U.S. Navy to perform material procurement and repair work on USS HARTFORD (SSN-768), a Los Angeles-class attack submarine damaged in a collision March 20. Electric Boat is a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics. Under the modification, Electric Boat will perform off-hull fabrication of the port retractable bow plane as well as material procurement and off-hull fabrication of the sail to restore USS HARTFORD to full-service condition. Work is expected to be completed by January 2010. The contract initially was awarded May 21; with this modification, the total value is now $37.4 million.


NEWS BULLETIN
Wednesday, July 8, 2009

TSA member carriers
plan series of rate increases

OAKLAND — Container shipping lines serving the Asia-U.S. freight market say average rate levels achieved in the latest round of service contract negotiations are not sustainable over the typical 12-month 2009-10 contract term. As a result, lines in the Transpacific Stabilization Agreement (TSA) have adopted a voluntary guideline across-the-board increase of $500 per 40-foot container (FEU, with proportionate increases for other equipment sizes, to take effect August 10, 2009. The increase will apply to rates for all commodities and all U.S destinations. TSA carriers said they will also pursue full implementation of the quarterly bunker fuel charge, which adjusted upward on July 1 to reflect higher fuel prices. And they added that the planned GRI does not preclude the possibility of a peak season surcharge if the market measurably strengthens and extensive peak season costs are incurred.


Port of Tacoma making headway
on clean air strategy implementation

TACOMA — The Port of Tacoma reports it posted significant progress in the first year of a regional cooperative effort to reduce port-related diesel and greenhouse gas emissions. The Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy Implementation Report outlines progress by the port and its regional partners, the ports of Seattle and Vancouver, B.C., to meet jointly established short- and long-term clean air goals for ships, cargo-handling equipment, rail, trucks and harbor craft. The goals were adopted in early 2008 as part of the Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy. The implementation report calls out the early progress achieved by all three ports through their cooperative relationships with customers, tenants, and air and environmental regulatory agencies. Port of Tacoma tallied the following first year results:
57 percent of the ships that call frequently at the port met or exceeded the 2010 goal by using distillate fuel at berth.
47 percent of cargo-handling equipment met or exceeded the 2010 goal. Also, all diesel equipment at the port uses ultra-low sulfur fuel or biodiesel blend.
The port supported its rail operators' participation in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's SmartWay program. All switching locomotives serving the port use ultra-low sulfur diesel.
86 percent of the drayage trucks serving the port met or exceeded the 2010 goal of 1994 or newer model year emission standards.


Port of Everett calling for
Port Commissioner applications

EVERETT — The Port of Everett Commission is seeking applications for candidates to fill the vacant position of Port Commissioner in District 2. Applications will be accepted from July 10 to July 23. Applications are due no later than 5 p.m. on July 23, 2009. One copy of the application, along with proof of residency within Port Commission District 2 is required at the time of submittal. No e-mail applications will be accepted. To Qualify, go to: http://www.portofeverett.com/docs/application_for_district_2_appointment_july_2009.pdf for the application form. Send the completed form to:
Port of Everett
Executive Office
2911 Bond Street, Ste. 202
Everett, WA 98201
The Port Commission will hold a special meeting on July 24 to include an executive session at the beginning to review District 2 candidate qualifications and then resume the special meeting to select individuals for interviews to be conducted at a special meeting on July 28, 2009. This meeting will be held at 9 a.m. at the Port Commission meeting room, 2911 Bond Street Ste. 109; Everett, WA 98201 to interview the candidates selected for interviews. After the Commissioners discuss the merits of the candidates during the public meeting, the Port Commission will vote on the appointment for the District 2 Commissioner position. The selected candidate will fill the position until the Snohomish County auditor confirms the results of the November 2009 election. The Port Commission will not consider candidates who intend to run for Port Commissioner in District 2 in the November 2009 election.


Port of Seattle extends deadline
for Eastside Rail Corridor purchase

SEATTLE — Port of Seattle CEO Tay Yoshitani has announced that the port and BNSF have agreed to extend the deadline for the proposed acquisition of the Eastside Rail Corridor through the end of 2009. The two parties agreed to the extension due to continued uncertainty in the credit markets and the effects of the economic recession on port finances. The port was slated to acquire the corridor for $107 million in December 2008, but the transaction was postponed after the collapse of global credit markets. The Surface Transportation Board, the federal regulatory agency that oversees rail acquisitions, has yet to complete its review of the proposed sale. The sale cannot close before the STB issues its approval. “We continue to believe that the rail corridor should be in public ownership,” Mr. Yoshitani said. “It is an invaluable asset for the region.”


Port of Tacoma schedules
free bus tour for July 31

TACOMA — The Port of Tacoma is offering a Free Bus Tour, Friday, July 31 from 9:30AM - 12:00PM. The bus Leaves from Lakewood, SR 512 Park & Ride, S.E. side of S. Tacoma Way & SR 512 )10617 S. Tacoma Way). Space is limited and reservations are required. Reserve your seat by calling 253-383-9463 or emailing at bustours@portoftacoma.com. Children age six and over are welcome. Photo ID is required for passengers over 17 years old. For more information, go to www.portoftacoma.com.


NEWS BULLETIN
Monday, July 6, 2009

Over 20 Foss vessels
receive Devlin safety awards

SEATTLE — Foss Maritime Company’s commitment to maintaining a safe working environment for its employees has been recognized by a top maritime organization, which cited 22 of the company's vessels for outstanding safety records, an increase from 18 vessels over 2008. The Chamber of Shipping of America (CSA) presented the Foss vessels with Jones F. Devlin Awards at the Annual Safety Awards Luncheon in Houston, Texas. The awards are given to self-propelled merchant vessels that have operated for two full years or more without a crewmember losing a full turn at watch because of an occupational injury. Altogether, the Foss ships achieved the equivalent of 112 years without a lost-time injury.


Hamburg Sud, Alianca
raising bunker surcharges

MORRISTOWN, NJ — Hamburg Süd and Aliança have announced that they will increase bunker surcharges on their East Coast Americas trade routes by $25 per TEU, effective at the beginning of August. Company officials said while they regretted the need to increase prices to customers, especially in today’s challenging economy, the changes were necessary in the face of a renewed rise in bunker fuel costs – one of the largest cost factors in service delivery.


New NHTSA figures show
trucking fatalities declining

ARLINGTON, VA — The American Trucking Associations (ATA) reports that figures released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) indicate that the truck-involved fatality rate in 2008 declined 12 percent, dropping from 4,822 in 2007 to 4,229. In addition to a 12 percent reduction in crash fatalities involving large trucks, the number of truck occupant deaths decreased 16 percent in 2008, from 805 in 2007 to 677. The overall number of people killed in motor vehicle crashes in the United States decreased 9.7 percent from 41,259 in 2007 to 37,261 in 2008, the lowest level since 1961. Programs dedicated to increasing the use of safety belts, coupled with new hours-of-service regulations, which took effect in 2005, have greatly improved highway safety. The truck-involved fatality rate is now at its lowest since the U.S. Department of Transportation began keeping those statistics in 1975.


Port of Portland advances
small business contracting program

PORTLAND — The Port of Portland’s successful small business contracting programs got a boost starting July 1. As a result of a recently completed Disparity Study, the port has resumed setting Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) contracting goals on federally funded projects and will expand its definition of “small business” to increase the pool of subcontractors available. The port will expand its small business definition to include firms certified as small businesses in Oregon and Washington and will require that at least two of the bids in solicitation processes for $5,000 to $100,000 projects are from small businesses—the current requirement is one. The port will also research and develop a contractor rotation process to ensure that work is spread fairly among pools of on-call contractors. The complete Port Action Plan, the Disparity Study Executive Summary and other study documents as well as information on all of the Port Small Business Development programs are available on the Port’s website at http://www.portofportland.com/Notices/POP_Dsprty_Stdy_02_blt.htm or by contacting Rhonnda Parsons Edmiston at 503-944-7587.


Alaska Airlines begins
Portland to Maui flights

PORTLAND — On July 3, Alaska Airlines inaugurated service between Portland and Maui. The thrice-weekly flights will expand to daily service starting Aug. 7, 2009. Flights from Portland will depart Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at 9:50 a.m. and arrive at 12:45 p.m. Return flights will depart Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at 1:45 p.m. and arrive at 10:15 p.m. (All times are local.) The new flights are operated with Boeing 737-800 aircraft, accommodating 16 passengers in first class and 141 in the main cabin. All flights to Hawaii offer Hawaiian themed beverages and meal service.


NEWS BULLETIN
Friday, July 3, 2009

Port of Tacoma celebrates
10th anniversary of WUT

TACOMA — At a special series of events held in Tacoma June 26, more than 100 shipping line and Port of Tacoma officials, elected officials, customers and vendors gathered to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Washington United Terminals (WUT) and Hyundai Merchant Marine at the port. WUT, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Korean-based Hyundai Merchant Marine, opened at the Port of Tacoma in 1999 operating an 80-acre terminal. Located on the 51-foot-deep Blair Waterway, the WUT terminal was the first major new container terminal development on the upper Blair since the removal of the Blair Bridge in 1997. At the time, it was the largest new terminal construction project in Port of Tacoma history. Hyundai and the port partnered to invest a total of $100 million in the new terminal. The port invested in the construction of the 80-acre, two-berth terminal and the ondock intermodal rail yard, and Hyundai purchased four container cranes and yard handling equipment. The facility employs 200 full-time personnel with family-wage jobs. It is estimated the statewide economic impact of WUT's operations connects with more than 1,800 jobs throughout Washington state.


Port of Longview welcomes
new Hawaii barge service

LONGVIEW — Daybreak Transportation and Rail Transfer of Longview, has launched a monthly barge service to and from Hawaii through the Port of Longview. First launching in May 2009, barges continue to travel to Hawaii with building materials, lumber, steel, construction equipment and project cargo. On the return voyage, the barge will carry containerized refuse, known in Hawaii as “opala”, from Hawaii to Eastern Washington landfills. The Port of Longview is responsible for receipt and delivery of cargo at the port’s staging area, as well as transferring cargo to and from the dock. Daybreak has partnered with SSA Marine for loading and stowing cargo on the barge. Brusco Tug & Barge, also of Longview, has been contracted to provide the tug and barge services.


New Panamanian president
names maritime administrator

PANAMA CITY — Ricardo Martinelli who was sworn-in President of the Republic of Panama July, 1 has designated Roberto Linares as the new administrator of the Panama Maritime Authority (AMP) and Minister of Maritime Affairs. Mr. Linares, 48, studied at Admiral Farragut Naval Academy and has a BA from the University of Arizona. His business experience includes having owned a long liners fishing company and being a consultant for the fishing industry during 15 years. According to Panama’s legislation, the AMP Administrator’s appointment has to be ratified by the National Assembly, which is expected in the next few weeks.


US rail freight traffic
down during week

WASHINGTON, DC — Freight traffic on U.S. railroads remained down for the week ended June 20 compared with the same period last year, the Association of American Railroads reports. U.S railroads reported originating 261,717 cars, down 17.7 percent from the same week in 2008. Regionally, carloadings were down 11.9 percent in the West and 25.2 percent in the East. Intermodal volume of 187,759 trailers or containers was down 17.8 percent from the same week last year. Container volume fell 12 percent and trailer volume dropped 39.0 percent. Total volume on U.S. railroads for the week ending June 20 was estimated at 27.7 billion ton-miles, off 16.6 percent from the same week last year. Eighteen of 19 carload freight commodity groups were down from last year, with declines ranging from 1.8 percent for farm products other than grain to 65.4 percent for metallic ores. The lone group showing an increase was the catch-all category labeled "all other carloads" which was up 11.9 percent.


Corps seeking comment
on Umpqua River dredging

PORTLAND — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is seeking public comments on an updated environmental assessment of annual maintenance dredging of the Umpqua River. The Umpqua River entrance and navigation channel, and the Winchester Bay access channels require maintenance dredging of up to 275,000 cubic yards of material per year. This dredging clears shoaling and sedimentation in the navigation channel providing a more consistent channel for all vessels entering and leaving the river. A change to the established project involves the placement of dredged material at two Ocean Dredge Material Disposal Sites newly designated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The new sites meet a long-term need for locations in which to dispose of dredged material. The draft environmental assessment is available for public review and comment at http://www.nwp.usace.army.mil/pm/e/en_plan_assess.asp. Questions or comments regarding the environmental documents should be directed to Dr. Jan Stuart at (503) 808-4543, or mailed to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Portland District, Attn: CENWP-PM-E (Stuart), P.O. Box 2946, Portland, OR, 97208-2946. Comments must be received by July 25, and refer to public notice number CENWP-PM-E-09-06, Maintenance Dredging for the Umpqua river coastal navigation project, Douglas County, Ore.


NEWS BULLETIN
Thursday, July 2, 2009

Pacific Northwest ports
release clean air report

SEATTLE — The Port of Seattle, along with the ports of Tacoma and Vancouver, BC, have released their first annual Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy Implementation Report. This regional partnership was developed to reduce maritime and port-related diesel and greenhouse gas emissions in the Pacific Northwest that affect air quality and climate change. The goal of the Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy is to reduce air emissions in the Pacific Northwest from current and future maritime port operations through specific strategies and actions within each category of port operation. The Implementation Report set goals for transparency, progress, and clarity around air quality. Although there are a number of technical reporting standards to clarify between the three port agencies, there have been good benchmarks established for future collaboration, as environmental goals are met in the coming years. Go to http://www.portseattle.org/seaport/ for the full Clean Air Strategy Report


Panama Canal Authority
calling for expansion work bids

PANAMA CITY — Moving ahead with its Expansion Program, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) will soon solicit bids for the fourth and last dry excavation project. The project will be the final phase in creating an access channel that will link the new Pacific locks with the Canal’s existing Gaillard Cut (the narrowest stretch of the Panama Canal). As the second most significant contract of the Expansion Program, the scope of work will include the excavation, removal and disposal of approximately 27 million cubic meters of non-classified material. Moreover, the solicitation will call for the installation of an approximately 1.8-kilometer long backfilled cellular cofferdam water barrier and the construction of a 3.5-kilometer long impervious clay core-rock fill dam. The ACP expects to make construction plans, specifications and contractual requirements available by the end of the month.


COSCON joining Evergreen
in new combined service

TAIPEI — To help minimize the impact of soaring bunker price and to respond to the deteriorating market conditions between the Far East and South Africa/ East Coast South America, COSCON/Evergreen will combine their existing jointly operated ESA and FAX services into a new ESA service. The new service, which is expected to start on July 6, 2009 from Shanghai, will comprise 11 vessels with a capacity of 3,500 TEUs. COSCON will provide four vessels and Evergreen will provide seven vessels separately. The first vessel to depart will be "MASS 0816W' from Shanghai on July 6, 2009. Port rotation is as follows: Shanghai / Ningbo / Kaohsiung / Yantian / Hong Kong/ Singapore / Tanjung Pelepas PTP / Durban / Cape Town / Montevideo / Buenos Aires / Paranagua / Santos / Durban / Singapore / Hong Kong / Shanghai. Port of Kaohsiung and Paranagua are served by Evergreen's vessels only.


Paragon Shipping sets
pair of time charter contracts

ATHENS — Paragon Shipping Inc., a global shipping transportation company specializing in drybulk cargoes, has announced that it has entered into new two year time charter contracts for the CALM SEAS and the CORAL SEAS. Both vessels have been forward fixed on period time charters for 23 to 26 months at a gross daily rate of $15,775 per vessel with Intermare Transport GMBH.


Corps gives guidelines
for safe Fourth of July

PORTLAND — As the nation’s largest federal provider of water-based recreation, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers stresses water safety and urges extra caution while in or around water during the upcoming Independence Day holiday. Many people include water-based recreation as part of their Fourth of July festivities. Unfortunately, some celebrations end tragically due to accidents in, on and around the water. The Corps urges the public to observe the following water safety tips to ensure a safer recreation experience over the holiday and throughout the year. Wear your life jacket: About 6,000 people drown in the United States each year. This is the second leading cause of accidental death for persons 15 to 44 years of age. The majority of these tragedies could have been prevented by simply wearing a life jacket. Please do your friends and loved ones a favor – wear your life jacket. Learn to swim and don’t overestimate your skill: Once you know how to swim, ensure that you always swim with a buddy. Don’t rely on inner tubes or water toys to keep you afloat. Know your limits. Each year many people drown by overestimating their swimming skills and swimming beyond their limits. Beware of cold water temperatures: Hypothermia occurs when the body loses heat faster than it can produce it. This can happen in any season, especially in the Pacific Northwest, where water temperatures remain low all year. Don’t drink and boat: About half of adolescent and adult deaths associated with water recreation involve alcohol use. Just one beer can impair your balance, vision, judgment and reaction time, thus making you a potential danger to yourself and others. Don’t include alcohol in your outing if you are planning to have fun in, on, or near the water. For more information on these and other water safety tips please visit the Corps’ water safety Web site at http://watersafety.usace.army.mil/safetytips.htm.


NEWS BULLETIN
Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Terminal association warns of
rising tariffs at northwest ports

BELLEVUE, WA — The Northwest Marine Terminal Association, comprised of public port authorities in Oregon and Washington states, reports that a number of member ports will be adjusting tariffs on or about July 1, 2009. In many instances, this will involve labor and or tonnage rate increases stemming from increases announced by the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) June 19, 2009. Tariff rate increases may be instituted with less than 30 days’ advance notice as a result of member ports being apprised of PMA changes on short notice. Parties with specific questions about tariff rates at a particular port are encouraged to contact that port or visit its website.


Free waterfront harbor cruises
scheduled by Port of Everett

EVERETT — On July 12, the Port of Everett in partnership with the Everett Parks Department will kick off the first-ever working waterfront harbor cruise with three additional cruises offered this summer. During each “free” cruise, Port of Everett staff will host 75 guests on a ferry ride touring the Everett Waterfront and exploring the diverse roles the port plays in the area. Topics of discussion will include international trade, property development, boating facilities, public recreation and environmental stewardship. The ferry will board at 9:45 a.m. at the 10th Street Marine Park and Boat Launch and arrive back at the loading location at approximately 11 a.m. Locations along the waterfront will include Port of Everett Marina facilities, Jetty Island, Naval Station Everett, and the port’s shipping terminals. In addition to the first harbor cruise on July 12, cruises will be offered July 26, August 2 and August 16 at the same time and place. Don’t wait to sign up. Space is limited, and children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. To check availability and make seat reservations, call the Jetty Kiosk at 425.257.8304.


Crowley tugs saving fuel
with new electrical scheme in LA

JACKSONVILLE, FL — Crowley tugboats used for ship assist and escort operations in the Port of Los Angeles have begun using newly installed shore-side electrical power when not on the job to cut fuel consumption and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Previously, the tugs tied up at the dock needed to run their generators to provide electrical power. Crowley and the Port of Los Angeles completed this environmentally friendly initiative, also known as cold ironing, at Berth 86 this month. The port paid to run electrical power to the dock, and Crowley purchased and installed the electrical connections to the boats and transformers to take the voltage from 440 volts to 220 volts. Overall, Crowley expects to conserve fuel used by the generators daily in its Los Angeles operations, and consequently reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 486,180 pounds in the first year. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, each gallon of diesel fuel produces approximately 22.2 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions. Crowley already has cold ironing capabilities in Seattle, Jacksonville, Pennsauken and Puerto Rico.


Seattle Port Commissioners
Ok Sea-Tac project restart

SEATTLE — Citing recent signs of hope in the global economy, Port of Seattle Commission have voted to restart construction on the new rental car facility to serve Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. The vote follows on the recent sale of revenue bonds to finance the facility, scheduled to open in 2012. Construction on the $419 million, 23-acre site will generate up to 1,000 new jobs in 2009. When the facility opens in 2012, construction activities will have created over 3,000 local, family-wage jobs and generated nearly $2 million in tax revenues for the City of SeaTac. Construction on the project was suspended in December because of the meltdown in global credit markets. Commissioners voted to put the project on hold until markets recovered and bonds could be sold to finance the facility. Last week, the port announced the successful sale of $317 million in revenue bonds.


Marine products firm executive
pleads guilty in conspiracy case

WASHINGTON, DC — The chief executive officer of a former Virginia marine products company pleaded guilty and has agreed to pay a $100,000 criminal fine and serve time in jail for his role in a conspiracy to rig bids and allocate customers with respect to marine products purchased by the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Coast Guard, and other public and private entities, the Department of Justice announced. According to a one-count felony charge filed on May 26, 2009, in the U.S. District Court in Norfolk, Va., Frank A. March, chief executive officer of a former marine products company located in Clearbrook, Va., participated in a conspiracy between June 2001 and December 2002 to allocate customers and rig bids for contracts of foam-filled marine fenders and buoys. During the course of the conspiracy, the conspirators discussed and agreed to allocate among themselves contracts from the Department of Defense (DOD), the Department of Homeland Security and others. Under the plea agreement, March has agreed to cooperate fully in the Department's ongoing antitrust investigation. The amount of jail time March will serve will be determined by the court.