US Ports Research Articles

Are There Regional Differences in US Hardwood Product Exports?

Abstract Exporting is a critical component of the product mix for many domestic hardwood firms. Previous research has identified factors associated with hardwood lumber exporting behavior, but less is known about the advantages and disadvantages to exporting associated with the region within which a firm is located, or about exporting of secondary hardwood products. A procedure comparing a measure of production (employment) to the level of exporting in three US hardwood regions (based on aggregations of state-level data) was used to contrast regional relative exporting of primary and secondary products. Several factors were then considered as possible explanations for the observed regional differences. Overall, the results suggested that proximity to seaports (i.e., the East Coast) benefited exporting of both hardwood lumber and secondary products, but the impact was greater for lumber. Thus, for secondary products, regional exporting barriers appeared to be lower. Firm size and sawtimber quality and species were additional factors that were associated with regional exporting. Data for individual states provide clues to interstate movement of hardwood products as they make their way to US ports. This influence also is discussed, but such movement makes state-level analysis of exporting difficult.

Paying for harbor maintenance in the US: Options for moving past the Harbor Maintenance Tax

The Harbor Maintenance Tax is a fundamentally flawed maintenance funding mechanism for the critical US port system. Three alternatives were analyzed. User fee rates were estimated for either a national or regional tonnage based fee. Our results indicate that maintenance cost recovering regional fees could vary widely from about 10cents per tonne to nearly 80cents per tonne. A national rate would be about 30cents per tonne. The large regional differences and affects on bulk shippers are likely to make implementing and maintaining cost recovering tonnage based fees infeasible. Two other mechanisms are considered. One possibility is to abolish the HMT without a replacement mechanism. The obvious strength of this approach is its simplicity, the weaknesses is that it is not budget neutral. Another possibility is to increase the federal diesel tax rate. One strength of the approach is the reasonable rate increase required to recover port maintenance costs (estimated between 0.278 and 0.315cents per liter). An additional strength is that relatively inefficient fuel users will either make the largest share of the additional payments or the freight will shift modes to one that is more efficient. One weakness is that the rate has been unchanged since 1997, this points to the political difficulty involved in passing such a rate increase.

Making lemonade out of lemons: port operators’ perceptions of their port security regulation compliance

Firms often complain about the implementation of new regulations. Many regulations are perceived as an additional cost for no business value. This paper reviews the perceptions by the US and EU port and terminal managers of the business value port security regulation compliance gives their organization. Resource-based strategic theory is used as a framework for gauging these perceptions of value through the administration of a survey to all EU and US port and terminal operators on their security compliance with “best practices.” Although some managers perceive that a variety of security assets under their control are very important to their business value, most agree that it is the way security assets are deployed or the right combination of assets that is perceived to add the value. The right combination of assets, capabilities, and competencies are perceived to give an organization-enhanced value if the combination is valuable, rare, inimitable, and/or not easily substitutable (VRIN).

Assessment of port-related air quality impacts: geographic analysis of population

Increased global trade has led to greater transportation by rail, road and ships to move cargo. Based upon multiple near-road and near-source monitoring studies, the busy roadways and large emission sources at ports may impact local air quality within several hundred metres of the ports. Health effects have been associated with near-road exposures and proximity to large emission sources, so characterising emission sources is important for understanding potential health effects. To address this need, we have developed a new community-scale tool called C-PORT to model emissions related to all port-area activities and predict concentrations of multiple criteria and hazardous air pollutants at fine spatial scales in the near-source environment. We present a geographical information system analysis of areas surrounding five US ports (Ports of New York and New Jersey, Virginia, Savannah, Miami, and Houston) to determine potential sources of concern related to freight transport and demographics of the near-source population that could be affected.

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission a Global Leader in Consumer Product Safety

In her 2014 Colston Wame Lecture, Inez M. Tenenbaum, former Chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (2009-2013), reflects on the organization's accomplishments under her leadership and discusses work that remains to be done by the Commission. ********** Good morning, everyone. It is a great pleasure to be attending the annual conference of the American Council on Consumer Interests. I will always be grateful to President Obama for nominating me to be the chairman of the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in 2009. The four and one-half years that I served as chairman were the most transformative years in the history of the Commission. During this time, the CPSC became the global leader in consumer product safety, and my team and I made the CPSC a very different agency than when I joined it in 2009. Today, the CPSC is stronger, more proactive, and better at protecting the consumer, especially children. Let me give you a few examples of the many proactive initiatives the CPSC undertook in the last five years: * Developed a new five-year strategic plan which set forth a 21 st century mission and vision for the CPSC, made the agency more proactive, more focused on injury prevention, and moved the agency into being the global leader in consumer product safety; * Increased its number of employees by 175--now an agency with more than 500 diverse employees; * Implemented the landmark Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) that establishes the lowest allowable lead limits in children's products, provides for a mandatory federal toy standard, and provides for new rules on infant-durable equipment. The United States can now say that it has the safest, strongest crib standard in the world. * Pursuant to the CPSIA, developed more than 50 Congressionally mandated rulemaking activities in four years, which is a record that I do not believe will ever be topped by the agency. * Launched a publicly searchable database on consumer products--saferproducts.gov--which allows consumers, government officials, and others to share their experiences with consumer products. Saferproducts.gov receives more than 200, 000 visits per month and has more than 15, 000 incident reports available for consumers to review. * Opened the new National Product Testing and Evaluation Center in Rockville, Maryland, which allows the CPSC to test consumer products in a state-of-the art facility. * Opened the first foreign CPSC office in Beijing, where our employees work with the Chinese government, domestic and foreign manufacturers, and other US government agencies to ensure safer products coming into the United States. * Developed in cooperation with US Customs and Border Protection a Risk Assessment Methodology (RAM) pilot program at US ports that will go nationwide in 2016. * Created the Office of Education, Global Outreach, and Small Business Ombudsman to offer educational resources on the regulated community as well as developed international partnerships for consumer safety. Anyone who has followed the CPSC over the years will join in the opinion that my years as Chairman of the CPSC were transformative years. In the 40 years since the CPSC was established, never has so much positive change been accomplished under one Chairman's term. I am proud of my record at the CPSC, but there is still much more work to be done. Port surveillance is one area that was greatly improved during my tenure, yet more work needs to be completed to have a comprehensive national port surveillance program. As previously mentioned, when Congress passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008, it directed the CPSC to create a pilot Risk Assessment Methodology (RAM) to identify imported products that are most likely to be noncompliant. The RAM targeting system, which integrates data from CPSC's internal systems with data collected by Customs and Border Protection, is operational. …

Impact of the Keystone XL pipeline on global oil markets and greenhouse gas emissions

The proposed Keystone XL pipeline to connect Canadian oil sands with US refineries and ports has attracted much controversy. Based on an economic model, this study finds that the biggest emissions impact of the pipeline may be due to its effect of lowering global oil prices and, in turn, increasing global oil consumption (and related emissions). The analysis therefore points to a gap in existing assessments of the Keystone XL project.

Legal aspects of cruise medicine — can a non-US ship’s doctor be sued for malpractice in Florida?

An English ship's doctor treated a non-US female patient for abdominal discomfort on a foreign-flagged cruise ship off the coast of Haiti. In Mexico the patient underwent abdominal surgery, followed by complications, for which her lawyers wanted to take the ship's doctor to court in Florida, USA. A trial court granted their wish, but this decision was reversed on appeal as the factors discussed were insufficient to establish Florida jurisdiction over the ship's doctor. The decision is not about whether malpractice occurred; it is about limiting the possibility of taking the ship's doctor to a court in a location preferred by the plaintiffs' lawyers. The appeal court ruling is important for non-US doctors working as independent contractors on cruise vessels that visit US ports, and it will hopefully prevent some of the more frivolous law suits from being filed in the future.

Acute gastroenteritis and video camera surveillance: a cruise ship case report

A 'faecal accident' was discovered in front of a passenger cabin of a cruise ship. After proper cleaning of the area the passenger was approached, but denied having any gastrointestinal symptoms. However, when confronted with surveillance camera evidence, she admitted having the accident and even bringing the towel stained with diarrhoea back to the pool towels bin. She was isolated until the next port where she was disembarked. Acute gastroenteritis (AGE) caused by Norovirus is very contagious and easily transmitted from person to person on cruise ships. The main purpose of isolation is to avoid public vomiting and faecal accidents. To quickly identify and isolate contagious passengers and crew and ensure their compliance are key elements in outbreak prevention and control, but this is difficult if ill persons deny symptoms. All passenger ships visiting US ports now have surveillance video cameras, which under certain circumstances can assist in finding potential index cases for AGE outbreaks.

Everyday violence, structural racism and mistreatment at the US–Mexico border

Immigration laws that militarize communities may exacerbate ethno-racial health disparities. We aimed to document the prevalence of and ways in which immigration enforcement policy and militarization of the US–Mexico border is experienced as everyday violence. Militarization is defined as the saturation of and pervasive encounters with immigration officials including local police enacting immigration and border enforcement policy with military style tactics and weapons. Data were drawn from a random household sample of US citizen and permanent residents of Mexican descent in the Arizona border region (2006–2008). Qualitative and quantitative data documented the frequency and nature of immigration related profiling, mistreatment and resistance to institutionalized victimization. Participants described living and working in a highly militarized environment, wherein immigration-related profiling and mistreatment were common immigration law enforcement practices. Approximately 25% of respondents described an immigration-related mistreatment episode, of which 62% were personally victimized. Nearly 75% of episodes occurred in a community location rather than at a US port of entry. Participant mistreatment narratives suggest the normalization of immigration-related mistreatment among the population. Given border security remains at the core of immigration reform debates, it is imperative that scholars advance the understanding of the public health impact of such enforcement policies on the daily lives of Mexican-origin US permanent residents, and their non-immigrant US citizen co-ethnics. Immigration policy that sanctions institutional practices of discrimination, such as ethno-racial profiling and mistreatment, are forms of structural racism and everyday violence. Metrics and systems for monitoring immigration and border enforcement policies and institutional practices deleterious to the health of US citizens and residents should be established.

Assessment of Particulate Matter Levels in Vulnerable Communities in North Charleston, South Carolina prior to Port Expansion

INTRODUCTIONThe Port of Charleston, one of the busiest US ports, currently operates five terminals. The fifth terminal is being planned for expansion to accommodate container ships from the proposed Panama Canal expansion. Such expansion is expected to increase traffic within local vulnerable North Charleston neck communities by at least 7,000 diesel truck trips per day, more than a 70% increase from the present average rate of 10,000 trucks per day. Our objective was to measure the current particulate matter (PM) concentrations in North Charleston communities as a baseline to contrast against future air pollution after the proposed port expansion.METHODSSaturation study was performed to determine spatial variability of PM in local Charleston neck communities. In addition, the temporal trends in particulate air pollution within the region were determined across several decades. With the BGI sampler, PM samples were collected for 24 hours comparable to the federal reference method protocol. Gravimetric analysis of the PM filter samples was conducted following EPA protocol.RESULTSThe range of the PM10 annual average across the region from 1982 to 2006 was 17.0–55.0 μg/m3. On only two occasions were the records of PM10 averaged above the 50.0 μg/m3 national standard. In the case of PM2.5, the annual average for 1999–2006 ranged from 11.0 to 13.5 μg/m3 and no annual average exceeded the 15.0 μg/m3 PM2.5 annual standard.CONCLUSIONSAlthough ambient PM levels have fallen in the Charleston region since the 1960s due to aggressive monitoring by the stakeholders against air pollution, local air pollution sources within the North Charleston neck communities have consistently contributed to the PM levels in the region for several decades. This baseline assessment of ambient PM will allow for comparisons with future assessments to ascertain the impact of the increased truck and port traffic on PM concentrations.

An initial exploration of port capacity bottlenecks in the USA port system and the implications on resilience

Ports are clearly important to the national and global economies. Several high profile events highlight the need not only to harden ports but to decrease recovery times when failures do occur to increase the resilience of the system as a whole. Our research suggests that disruptions occur with regular frequency and, with outliers removed, range from 6 to 20 days in duration. Furthermore, we find key commodity classes, such as chemicals and food and farm products may be especially sensitive to those disruptions due to geographic cargo concentrations. While the US port system is capable of supporting current cargo volumes, it is sensitive to adverse events, leading us to conclude that stakeholders must place renewed focus on resilience in order to reduce economic impacts when major port disruptions occur. The port resilience research has been generously supported by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security through the National Center for Secure and Resilient Maritime Commerce (CSR) at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ.

River of Traffic: The Spatial Fragmentation of US Ports

Potter C. River of traffic: the spatial fragmentation of US ports, Regional Studies. Containerization has spatially fragmented the physical functions of US ports by reducing the friction of moving freight through ports to inland destinations. Previous studies of this shift have focused on case studies or selected municipalities. Employing descriptive statistics, regression analysis and geographical information system (GIS) mapping to explore shifts in longshoring, warehousing and trucking employment across the United States, this paper provides two major findings. First, employment in labour-intensive transportation activities, notably warehousing and trucking, is primarily driven by proximity to population concentrations rather than to port infrastructure. Second, a significant proportion of warehousing employment has migrated, forming a band approximately 200–300 kilometres inland.

Determination of optimal probabilistic seismic demand models for pile-supported wharves

One of the basic components of the Performance-Based Earthquake Engineering (PBEE) framework of Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research (PEER) Center is the probabilistic seismic demand model (PSDM). PSDM is based upon a representative relation between ground motion intensity measures (IMs) and engineering demand parameters (EDPs). This research aims to develop an optimal PSDM for typical pile-supported wharf structures in western US ports by using probabilistic seismic demand analysis (PSDA). In this study, 4 bins with 20 non-near-field ground motions and 7 typical pile-supported wharf structures are used to determine an optimal PSDM by PSDA. The model geometry used in this study has a hybrid configuration incorporating many common field conditions. The optimal PSDM should be practical, sufficient, effective and efficient – all tested through several IM–EDP pairs derived by PSDA. The ground motion IMs used in this study include characteristics such as spectral quantities, duration, energy-related quantities and frequency content. Different EDPs are considered for local, intermediate and global response quantities. The considered optimal PSDM comprises a spectral IM, such as spectral acceleration and one of several EDPs. The EDPs of moment curvature ductility factor, displacement ductility factor and horizontal displacement of embankment and differential settlement between deck and behind land are considered for local, intermediate and global response quantities, respectively. Optimal PSDMs are used within PEER–PBEE framework, where they are coupled with both ground motion intensity and structural element fragility models to yield probabilities of exceeding structural performance levels under certain seismic hazard.

A study of relative efficiency between privatised and publicly operated US ports

This study identifies and compares the financial performance of privatised ports with non-privatised ports using the stochastic frontier profit function and panel data regression analysis. The goal of privatisation is to improve capital utilisation, sharpen managerial incentives and reduce bureaucratic waste. Given the arguments in favour of private ownership, the question is whether privatised ports satisfy the expectation of higher profitability. US ports are unique compared to foreign counterparts, with organisational forms ranging from purely public to landlord to private. To assess relative efficiency, we obtain data from the Public Ports Finance Survey for the period 1997 to 2006. Our findings support the argument that private sector involvement has a positive impact on port efficiency in terms of its financial performance. When price of output, capital intensity, cost of labour and size are controlled for, we see greater profit margins in landlord ports.

Fault Tolerance Analysis of Surveillance Sensor Systems

A surveillance sensor system is a network of sensors that provides surveillance coverage to designated geographical areas. If all sensors are working properly, a well-designed surveillance system can supposedly provide the desirable level of detection capability for the locations and regions it covers. In reality, sensors may fail, falling out-of-service. Motivated by the need to determine the ability of a surveillance sensor system to tolerate the failure of sensors, we propose a fault tolerance capability measure to quantify the robustness of surveillance systems. The proposed measure is a conditional probability, characterizing the likelihood that a surveillance system is still working in the presence of sensor failures. Case studies of the surveillance sensor system in a major US port demonstrate that this new measure differentiates different surveillance systems better than using the sensor redundancy measure, or the reliability measure.

Is That a Rodent in Your Luggage? A Mixed Method Approach to Describe Bushmeat Importation into the United States

Bushmeat, defined as meat derived from wild animals, is a potential source of zoonotic pathogens. Bushmeat from restricted animals is illegal to import into the United States under US federal regulations. We reviewed US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) port of entry surveillance records from September 2005 through December 2010 and conducted focus group studies to describe trends in and reasons for bushmeat importation into the United States. In total, 543 confiscated bushmeat items were recorded. Half of the confiscated bushmeat items identified were rodents. Africa was the most frequent continent of origin. Seasonality was evident, with bushmeat confiscations peaking in late spring to early summer. Four times more bushmeat was confiscated during an enhanced surveillance period in June 2010 compared with the same period in previous years, suggesting that routine surveillance underestimated the amount of bushmeat detected at US Ports of Entry. Focus groups held in three major US cities revealed that bushmeat importation is a multifaceted issue. Longstanding cultural practices of hunting and eating bushmeat make it difficult for consumers to acknowledge potential health and ecologic risks. Also, US merchants selling African goods, including bushmeat, in their stores have caused confusion among importers as to whether importation is truly illegal. Enhancing routine surveillance for bushmeat and consistent enforcement of penalties at all ports of entry, along with health education aimed at bushmeat importers, might be useful to deter illegal importation.

Emissions reduction analysis of voluntary clean truck programs at US ports

This paper analyzed three incentive-based, voluntary vehicle replacement programs underway at US ports using fleet baseline and program completion data and an emissions standard-based emission estimation methodology. The principal findings demonstrate that best management practices for voluntary clean truck programs can substantially reduce truck drayage emissions, although not to the level achieved through mandatory programs. Emissions reductions were found to be 1–4% as compared to potential reductions of 12–15% for particulate matter and 31–34% for nitrogen oxides.

Impact of privatization on port efficiency and effectiveness: results from Panama and US ports

Panama has five main ports: Balboa and PSA Panama International on the Pacific, and Cristóbal, Manzanillo and Colon Container Terminal (CCT) on the Caribbean side. The government of Panama originally operated the ports of Balboa and Cristóbal. After being transferred from the United States government, most of these ports were privatized in the late 1990s. During this period, some ports in the United States have moved away from operating to non-operating. There are more private sector involvements and public–private partnerships. However, in the US there are few full asset privatizations as was done in Panama. This range of privatizations provides the opportunity to study the effects of various types of privatization on port production. We use financial econometric techniques to assess port performance during government operation and private sector operation. The results of the study provide an estimate of the savings and effectiveness gains from privatizations. Few studies examine effectiveness, beyond questionnaires of users. However, especially for transshipment ports as are the case in Panama, service variables, along with price, are very important in determining demand for service. This study compares the effectiveness of Panama privatized ports with US ports in which there are degrees of privatization.

Impact of Port of Entry Referrals on Initiation of Follow-Up Evaluations for Immigrants with Suspected Tuberculosis: Illinois

US-bound immigrants with suspected non-infectious TB are encouraged to be medically re-evaluated after arrival in the United States. We evaluated the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's immigrant referral process, designed to facilitate timely post-arrival evaluations. Over 1,200 immigrants with suspected TB arriving during October 1, 2008-September 30, 2010 were identified. In 2011, differences in days to evaluation initiation were assessed by referral type using survival analysis and Cox proportional hazard models. Among those receiving any referral, median time to post-arrival evaluation was significantly lower compared with immigrants receiving no referral (16 vs. 69days, respectively; p<0.0001). After adjusting for the covariates, immigrants receiving any referral initiated follow-up at 4 times the rate (adjusted hazard ratio=4.0; p<0.0001) of those receiving no referral. Implementing a referral system at US ports of entry will improve timeliness and increase the proportion of immigrants initiating domestic evaluation.

Smart containers and the public goods approach to supply chain security

This paper will review the state of technology related to smart containers; discuss their role in the drive to securing global supply chains; and use the economics of public goods to help explain the strategic decisions faced by government, shippers and carriers. The US Bureau of Customs and Border Protection has offered to give ‘green lane’ treatment to any smart container arriving at a US port of entry. Promised benefits would be no inspection and immediate release at the port. The problem is that there is no smart container currently in use; nor is the nature of a smart container yet agreed to by industry and government. The economics of public goods, as developed in this paper, help to clarify the role of the importer, the carrier, the foreign vendor and the US regulatory agencies. Essentially, the issue is how to manage the trade-off between efficient trade flows and security across international supply chains. It will be shown that some of these players have incentives to under-provide expenditures devoted to such security. But this creates a further opportunity for smart containers to mitigate that situation.