Comprehensive Environmental Management
Winner
Port of Tacoma - “Biofiltration: West Hylebos Log Yard” - (Click here for full report)
The Port of Tacoma’s cargo mix includes millions board of lumber and logs shipped around the world. In 2010, the Port was confronted with an enormous dilemma: bring the runoff from its log dock into compliance with stringent stormwater regulations in a cost-effective manner, or risk shuttering the Port’s lumber operations and the 40 jobs it supports. To meet this challenge, the Port devised a plan to design and create $2.7 million treatment facility. The resulting treatment facility delivered an innovative, economical solution by mimicking nature’s own filtering processes which to date reduces pollution loads by 92% and counting.
Honorable Mention
Maryland Port Administration - “Water Quality Master Plan” - (Click here for full report)
The commitment of the Maryland Port Administration (MPA) to the environmental stewardship of the Chesapeake Bay led the organization to implement its Water Quality Management Plan (WQMP.) As part of MPA’s effort to reduce the impact of stormwater runoff from Port facilities, the WQMP plan aims to meet anticipated National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Municipal Separate Stormwater System (MS4) permit requirements. Additionally, the plan aides MPA in realizing pollutant load reductions from the Chesapeake Bay nutrient and sediment Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL).
Honorable Mention
Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority - “Better Buildings Northwest Ohio” - (Click here for full report)
The Toledo-Lucas Port Authority’s BetterBuildings Northwest Ohio program delivers increased energy efficiency capabilities and alternative energy solutions to businesses and property owners throughout twenty-eight counties in the region. Through its Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) and bond financing, the BetterBuildings initiative provides for energy efficiency upgrades and renewable energy installations. Consequently, the Toledo-Lucas Port Authority’s BetterBuildings Northwest Ohio plan has established itself as a key economic development tool for revitalizing cities and buildings.
Mitigation
Winner
Port Tampa Bay - “McKay Bay Restoration” - (Click here for full report)
The Tampa Port Authority, with assistance from the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD), embarked on a combination of wetland restoration projects within the McKay Bay Ecosystem in the Tampa Bay Estuary. This work has resulted in the restoration of 78 acres of estuarine wetlands and adjacent shallow intertidal bay bottom. The project has, in return, resulted in immediate and positive impacts to the 980 acre impaired water body of McKay Bay.
Stakeholder Awareness, Education and Involvement
Winner
Port of Portland - “Environmental Initiatives at Seaports Worldwide: A Snapshot of Best Practices” - (Click here for full report)
The Port of Portland (Port) and the International Institute for Sustainable Seaports (I2S2) partnered together on an initiative to increase awareness of the role seaports around the globe play in implementing a broad array of environmental initiatives at seaports across the globe. The initiative’s resulting white paper, entitled, Environmental Initiatives at Seaports Worldwide: A Snapshot of Best Practices, was first released in 2010. It addressed the geographic, community, financial and regulatory drivers that impact port decision-making related to sustainability through an assessment of current environmental management initiatives. In 2013, the Port and I2S2 partnered again to create an updated version of the white paper, adding new information about environmental initiatives at seaports and assessing trends within the industry since the first white paper was developed.
Environmental Enhancement
Winner
Georgia Ports Authority - “Voluntary Diesel Reduction Through Investment in Equipment” (Click here for full report)
The Georgia Ports Authority’s (GPA’s) desire to limit the impacts of its diesel fuel usage on the environment prompted the organization to pursue a three-pronged approach in its ecological stewardship practices. The three facets employed by GPA to address its diesel fuel usage include: the reduction of diesel consumption, the electrification of equipment, and improvements in equipment and process efficiency. Through equipment modifications (including retrofits and repowerings,) cooperation with crane manufacturers and energy industry representatives, and consideration of process and equipment efficiency, GPA achieved sustainable outcomes. This approach assisted GPA in reducing fuel usage, associated energy costs, and air and climate emissions.
