Guest editorial: Your port is here to work for you, join us
At the Port of Hueneme, we like challenges. We have become innovators in our industry. When environmental initiatives such as shoreside power systems were still novelties in the industry, Hueneme had already adopted an environmental framework which would light the way. We collaborated with various stakeholders and funders and managed to develop the single most effective emissions reduction project in Ventura County (berth electrification) which has helped reduce over 80% of emissions from ocean going vessels.
Recently, the supply chain crisis has reached mainstream media and ports across the country have become part of daily conversations at the dinner table. Our essential workers at the Port of Hueneme are getting the job done without vessels lining up in anchor or trucks blocking driveways, which is the situation we see mounting in other port communities.
When our community had questions around their air quality, the Board of Commissioners accepted the challenge and invested $145,000 to purchase and place the only EPA reference-grade air quality monitors in South Oxnard. When some in the community asked for a full environmental impact report on the temporary use permit application for the empty lot at the end of Saviers and Hueneme roads, not only did the Port support it, we made it an opportunity to connect residents, resource agencies, and stakeholders to the project and our goals by soliciting input and feedback.
The proposed project is for a temporary vehicle storage lot strategically located along the Port’s designated primary corridor from the Port to the 101 Freeway — Hueneme Road. The location of the 34 acres is private land and zoned as light industrial. The storage lot proposal is for three years with two one-year options, for a maximum of five years.
In order to provide more community involvement and input, we created a Community Outreach Department to continue our conversations with all members of the local community. As COVID-19 spread and the pandemic strained our health and wellbeing, we leveraged our customer relationships, staff and resources to help provide essential items and food to more than 40,000 families countywide and made a special focus on South Oxnard. All of this, while continuing the vision to become a zero emissions port.
Our CEO, Kristin Decas, testified before a United States congressional committee on decarbonization of ports using the Port’s advances as a case study for success. Our Board of Harbor Commissioners adopted a Resolution for Decarbonization. The California Energy Commission awarded the Port of Hueneme a $200,000 grant to build a blueprint to achieve realistic targets to help decarbonize, electrify, and transition operations into the most environmentally friendly in the state, country, and perhaps the world.
The Port of Hueneme is bound just like other ports to meet the 2035 zero emission deadlines. Claiming such a commitment to meet the deadline is merely a symbolic gesture unless you’re actively working to ensure it happens. Hueneme has been actively working with the Coalition for Clean Air, Breathe Southern California, and Zero Emissions Advisors (ZEA) to craft our blueprint for zero emissions to help guide us and set rigorous, yet attainable goals.
Our practice is to be open and transparent and accountable in everything that we do. We embrace the opportunity to collaborate on all of these aforementioned initiatives. As a public agency, the Port is responsive and responsible because that is the norm. However, we’ll go farther if we go together. Looking to the wisdom of the African proverb, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Join us on our innovation and transformation plans toward decarbonization.
For more information on our environmental framework initiatives please visit www.portofhueneme.org/community/environment/
Mary Anne Rooney is the 2022 President of the Board of Harbor Commissioners.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Guest editorial: Your port is here to work for you, join us
