Bay Area ports receive $379M for zero-emission projects

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- Over $1 billion in grants have been awarded to seven California ports to build zero-emission infrastructure and improve air quality, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) announced Tuesday. Three of the ports awarded are in the San Francisco Bay Area, receiving a $379 million share.

The Port of Oakland, Port of San Francisco and Port of Redwood City were among the seven California ports set to receive funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Ports Program. The awarded money “aims to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality at ports across the nation,” according to Sen. Padilla’s office.

Nearly a third of the announced grant funds for California will go to the Port of Oakland. The $322,167,584 in grant money will be put toward zero-emission cargo handling equipment and transport trucks, according to the EPA. The senator’s office said that 762 pieces of battery electric or hydrogen fuel cell equipment will be purchased to “complete a nearly 100 percent­­ conversion of all cargo handling equipment to zero emissions technologies.” Money will also be put toward charging infrastructure, solar generation and a battery energy storage system.

The Port of San Francisco is set to receive $55,386,000, which will be used for ferry operations to transition to all-electric vessels, the EPA stated. The funding will also be used to complete ferry projects to connect downtown, Mission Bay and Treasure Island.

“This major investment will allow us to complete the Mission Bay Ferry Landing and to achieve an electric fleet, with zero emissions,” said Port of San Francisco Executive Director Elaine Forbes in a statement released by Sen. Padilla’s office. “We look forward to working with our partners at San Francisco Bay Ferry and the [San Francisco Public Utilities Commission] to provide Bay Area residents with the nation’s first zero-emission ferry network, and to bring ferry service to Mission Bay.”

The Port of Redwood City has also been awarded $1,966,545 for climate and air quality planning, including an emissions reduction strategy with targets and actions through 2050, the EPA announced. The port’s executive director, Kristine A. Zortman, said, “The Port of Redwood City applauds the EPA for this investment to facilitate the long-range planning and create a roadmap towards decarbonization by diversifying fueling options of Port operations.”

In all, the EPA announced $2.9 billion in Clean Ports Program grants for projects around the U.S. The program’s funding comes from the Inflation Reduction Act, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2022.

California’s ports process 40 percent of all containerized imports and 30 percent of all exports in the U.S., according to the senator’s office.