Port Of Los Angeles

The nation's largest seaport complex handled unexpectedly strong cargo traffic in August, particularly in imports from Asia, defying economists' predictions that its numbers had peaked in July and would head lower for the remainder of the year. The Port of Los Angeles, which ranks first in the nation in cargo container traffic, moved 23% more containers filled with imported goods than in August 2009, during the depths of the global recession. More important, perhaps, it was also an 8% increase from the port's July import numbers, which had been the best of the year.

Consider two projects that could have profound impacts on Los Angeles: Both would create thousands of jobs. One would increase traffic a bit; the other would significantly decrease it. One would be "carbon neutral," meaning it would not help the global environment but wouldn't hurt it either; the other would powerfully reduce emissions. Both could create some inconveniences to their immediate neighbors while delivering tax revenue, jobs and services to the city at large. One is the proposed downtown football stadium, and it has sailed through government approvals despite its potential for increasing traffic and inconveniencing people who live or work downtown.

With Mexican cruises slumping in popularity, two of the largest ships serving the Port of Los Angeles are pulling up anchor for more lucrative markets elsewhere. Royal Caribbean said its 3,100-passenger Mariner of the Seas, after a Mexican Rivera voyage that begins Sunday, will leave the Port of L.A. for South America and Europe, ending up in Galveston, Texas. Norwegian Cruise Lines will pull its 2,348-passenger Norwegian Star out of the port in May. The ship will eventually settle in Tampa, Fla. Cruise line officials and port officials say the moves stem from the sour economy and continuing drug-related violence in Mexico.

A surge in cargo traffic at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach has officials hoping that the U.S. economic recovery is gaining strength despite worrisome signs overseas. Combined, the neighboring ports handled more than 1.1 million cargo containers last month, an increase of 9.8% compared with March 2011. Much of the strength came from strong growth in imports, which were up a combined 12.8% for both ports compared with the same month last year. "Hopefully, it means that importers are starting to replenish their inventories" because they think that U.S. consumers will be in a buying mood, said Art Wong, spokesman for the Port of Long Beach.

The Port of Los Angeles continued to break in-house cargo volume records in April, taking in more than 400,000 containers in a single month for the first time in its history, port officials said. With transpacific trade booming and more ships calling on the port than last year, the facility handled more than 211,000 import cargo containers, 44% more than in April 1999.

The standing joke about the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach used to be that they were like the diesel version of elephant graveyards: the place where old trucks went to die. But lately, they have become a proving ground for technology that produces little or no pollution. On Tuesday, the first of 25 heavy-duty all-electric trucks rolled off a new Los Angeles assembly line. All are slated to work at the Port of Los Angeles or to make short hauls to and from the harbor.

The Port of Long Beach fell short of retaining its title as the nation's busiest commercial harbor as the neighboring Port of Los Angeles handled 4.9 million cargo containers last year compared with 4.6 million shipped through Long Beach. Record imports and a resurgence in exports helped both facilities beat record cargo totals set in 1999. Long Beach saw a 4% increase in cargo volume last year, while Los Angeles experienced a jump of 27%.

Striking workers in the Port of Los Angeles shut down the nation's largest coal export terminal Thursday, amid charges that the operators are trying to undermine contract talks and discriminating against employees who are staunch union supporters. The action, which began Wednesday night, has halted cargo operations at the Los Angeles Export Terminal, leaving one ship stranded at the dock and several waiting in the harbor to be loaded.

Boaters will have to steer clear of portions of the Port of Los Angeles during construction of a major pier during the next three years. Contractors will begin work on the port's Pier 300/400 project Tuesday. With the development of three miles of new navigation channels, a turning basin, and 5,000 linear feet of berths, it is the largest dredging and landfill project that has been undertaken in the nation, said port spokeswoman Barbara Yamamoto.

The Port of Los Angeles, in conjunction with the Los Angeles Office of International Trade, will open its San Fernando Valley Trade Office in the Valley Municipal Building, 14410 Sylvan St., Van Nuys. Beginning Thursday, Valley-based import/export businesses and manufacturers will be able to meet locally with city, state and federal commerce and trade agencies to provide financial advice, regulatory assistance and international trade expertise.

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping swept into Los Angeles on Thursday for a brief but action-packed visit that will include a stop at a local school, quality time with Vice President Joe Biden and tickets to Friday night's Lakers game. "He's a Kobe fan," said Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who invited Xi to the game. The mayor and Gov. Jerry Brown welcomed Xi, who is expected to become president of China next year, on the tarmac at LAX. From there, they drove to the Port of Los Angeles for a tour of a shipping terminal.

The waters near the nation's largest port complex have become a bustling feeding ground for increasing numbers of blue whales, putting the endangered animals at greater risk of being hit and killed by the enormous ships moving in and out of the harbor, according to researchers who've been tracking them for nearly two years. The whales, which migrate along the coast of California and are regularly spotted from May to December, are congregating in such numbers in the midst of this virtual freeway of ship traffic that the spot has become "the area of densest concentration close to shore in all of California," said research scientist John Calambokidis.

More than 30 restaurants, bars and venues will take part in Taste in San Pedro, a showcase for local cuisine and night life in the South Bay enclave. Concerts featuring Poncho Sanchez and Fan Halen round out the weekend. Harbor Boulevard Promenade and Berth 87, Port of Los Angeles. 6-10 p.m. Fri., Noon-9 p.m. Sat., noon-7 p.m. Sun. Free. Tasteinsanpedro.com.

A grassy 30-acre park opened in the port community of Wilmington on Saturday, prompting cheers from residents who had successfully blocked the construction of a gigantic sound wall that they feared would hem them in from the sea. Instead of building a mile-long, 20-foot-high barrier to serve as a buffer between homes and the rows of cargo containers and cranes at the Port of Los Angeles, port officials ended up constructing the $55-million Wilmington...

International trade is surging again at the major local ports, suggesting that economic strength is building despite stubbornly high unemployment. In January, the neighboring ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which together make up the country's largest freight complex, handled 13% more cargo containers than a year earlier. Other signs of recovery: Longshoremen are getting more dock work, some Southern California warehouses are hiring again, and trucking and railroad freight movement has increased.

With Mexican cruises slumping in popularity, two of the largest ships serving the Port of Los Angeles are pulling up anchor for more lucrative markets elsewhere. Royal Caribbean said its 3,100-passenger Mariner of the Seas, after a Mexican Rivera voyage that begins Sunday, will leave the Port of L.A. for South America and Europe, ending up in Galveston, Texas. Norwegian Cruise Lines will pull its 2,348-passenger Norwegian Star out of the port in May. The ship will eventually settle in Tampa, Fla. Cruise line officials and port officials say the moves stem from the sour economy and continuing drug-related violence in Mexico.

A federal judge on Monday issued a tentative ruling that would block implementation of certain provisions of the Clean Truck Program to cut diesel emissions by phasing out 17,000 old big rigs at the nation's busiest port complex. U.S. District Judge Christina Snyder's ruling would eliminate new rules including one at the Port of Los Angeles that prohibits drivers from being independent contractors, a provision sought by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and the Teamsters. Snyder was expected to issue a final ruling by the end of the week.

Next month, the fresh fruits, vegetables and flowers of the Farmers' Market will move to the Ports O'Call Village parking lot. The market, now at 6th and Centre streets, is open Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Parking is limited at the site. The Board of Harbor Commissioners recently approved a permit to move the market subject to approval by the Los Angeles City Council.