As ports address challenges, one particular initiative becomes more important, more central to our operations, every day. It’s an initiative that was once a positive thing that we should do and is now a critical function that we must do — that is, addressing environmental concerns, more popularly known as “green port” initiatives.
Cleaner water, cleaner emissions, less congestion and conservation of resources are now regularly on the radar of the general public, not just environmentalists. Regular citizens want their corporate citizens to behave and operate responsibly. Economic activity and the jobs that activity creates are no longer their own justification. As we see more and more, if business activity can’t be conducted responsibly, communities are simply willing to do without it.
This doesn’t have to be a problem for America’s ports. Creating and nurturing trust with the communities surrounding our ports can only help our industry in the long run. Do you want to build a new terminal? A new warehouse? A new rail transfer facility? Deepen your shipping channel? Tell your community, in an enthusiastic manner, why you think it’s important (actually, on that last point, you already know that you have your work cut out for you).
More importantly, show the families and community organizations in your area that the environmental impact of your project is just as important to your port as the project itself, demonstrating that economic activity and a clean environment are not mutually exclusive goals. Peaceful coexistence between these goals may once have been a challenge, but new technologies and approaches are introduced almost every day that make it not only possible, but efficient and economical.
Tell your communities how you’re using these approaches to protect the environment even as you’re creating new jobs.
Do the work in keeping up with green port issues. Implement new green technologies, and publicize your efforts. Don’t put yourself in a position where you think you’re announcing a vital new project or piece of business for your region, only to have your region respond with, at best, a grim silence.