Host Agency: Port of Long Beach

The Port of Long Beach is one of America's premier seaports and a trailblazer in goods movement and environmental stewardship.

Trade valued annually at more than $140 billion moves through Long Beach, making it the second-busiest seaport in the United States. Everything from clothing and shoes to toys, furniture and consumer electronics arrives at the Port before making its way to store shelves throughout the country. Specialized terminals also move petroleum, automobiles, cement, lumber, steel and other products.

A major economic force, the Port supports more than 30,000 jobs in Long Beach, 316,000 jobs throughout Southern California and 1.4 million jobs throughout the United States. It generates about $16 billion in annual trade-related wages statewide.

With a Green Port Policy guiding efforts to minimize or eliminate negative environmental impacts, the Port also is a catalyst for innovative environmental programs. Serving as a model for ports around the world, the Port of Long Beach pioneered such programs as the Green Flag vessel speed reduction air quality program, Green Leases with environmental covenants and the San Pedro Bay Ports Clean Air Action Plan. With these bold initiatives, the Port is dedicated to improving air quality more quickly and aggressively than has ever been attempted by any seaport, anywhere in the world.

Currently, the Port is moving forward on the Middle Harbor Redevelopment project, a $750 million renovation to transform two aging shipping terminals into one of the "greenest," most environmentally friendly terminals in the world. With a significant addition of railroad tracks and built-in environmental technology, the new terminal will double the cargo-moving capacity of the two existing facilities while cutting in half air pollution from operations there. Construction on the project could begin by the end of this year and will take 10 years to complete. The project will generate as many as 1,000 construction jobs a year, as well as 14,000 jobs in the goods-movement industry region wide.