Congressman Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, released the following statement at the adjournment of a Subcommittee hearing he convened to examine the efforts of the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to meet infrastructure needs and reduce emissions from port-related activities—including from trucks that provide services at the ports, as well as vessels in transit to and from the ports:
“The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach together form the largest port complex in the U.S., and they face a difficult challenge of balancing the need to grow their infrastructure to meet increasing cargo demand with the need to reduce emissions. The efforts being implemented by these ports to address these challenges are of interest not only to this Subcommittee, but to ports throughout the nation—including the port in my hometown of Baltimore.
"These two ports are not alone in their urgent needs to generate the revenue necessary to maintain and improve their infrastructure. From highways to railroads to ports, U.S. infrastructure is starving for investment. Individual communities and ports simply cannot solve these problems on their own, and we must recommit our nation to the value of maintaining the arteries that carry the commerce on which our economy depends.
“Additionally, the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have undertaken a serious effort to improve the quality of air through their Clean Trucks Program. While the details of this program are complicated and are currently being challenged, its scope underscores close space the scope of the pollution problems that these ports and their surrounding communities are facing.
“Today’s hearing offered us great insight into the complexities of the problems we must address, and I look forward to working with these ports, and with all of the Members of Congress who gathered today, to introduce and enact the measures we need to face these challenges.”