Seattle OKs Plan to Boost Volumes, Cut Pollution

The Port of Seattle Commission unanimously approved a package of incentives for terminal operators that will provide $7 million in rent breaks and defer some payments in return for steps they take to reduce diesel emissions from trucks.

The plan calls for terminal operators to become gatekeepers who would prohibit pre-1994 trucks from working on port property. It also creates a $1.5 million fund to buy old trucks from drivers and scrap them.

The goal of the plan is to enable the port’s three container terminals to attract more container traffic to the port by passing some of the rent breaks along to shipping lines in the form of lower terminal handling charges.

The relief package is focused on terminal operators whose revenues depend on the number of containers they handle. Port cargo was down 37 percent in February as consumer spending continued to drop, endangering the jobs that cargo generates.

In a move apparently unrelated to Tuesday’s port commission vote, Maersk Line plans to shift some of its vessel calls to Seattle from Los Angeles, starting in May, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

Seattle’s new package will take effect this June and last until June, 2010, but it may be adjusted as economic conditions change.

It is proportionally similar to what Los Angeles and Long Beach have offered their terminal operators, the port said.