South East Shipping News

 

Felix Pereira shared a slideshow
presentation with SIOR
event attendees.

Industrial realtors convention gets to hear the inside scoop of PortMiami's ambitious plan from top port planner

 

MIAMI-In reuniting its port system with the downtown, the city of Miami is taking several steps to revitalize its commercial real estate assets on a regional and international level.  With a slew of investment pouring in from federal, state and private sources toward local infrastructure, industrial sites and office space, speakers at SIOR’s 2012 Spring World Conference said the city is working to transform its underutilized south core and integrate the port into a world-class destination tied to the maritime industry.

In greeting the crowd at the Loews South Beach Hotel, SIOR President Geoff Kreusser said while regulatory uncertainty is "rampant" in Washington and on Wall Street, Miami-Dade County is showing strong inland growth in manufacturing and industrial—and it is continuing on the upswing.

The Port of Miami, a governmental agency that oversees industrial and economic development for county, has introduced its 20-year master plan for the expansion of the city’s 520 acre port, which will involve the deepening of channels to allow post-Panamax ships to pass through, as well as plans to create a new intermodal transportation center and a mega cruise terminal by the year 2035.

“We have pretty much diversified our portfolio and our operations,” said Felix Pereira, chief of planning at Port Miami, noting that the projected passenger counts for 2035 will be hitting approximately six million riders, but the development plan will be limited to the existing port area due to environmental reasons. “The port itself is tight,” he said.

But just recently, Pereira said the county and three local stakeholders reached an agreement to move forward with the port’s deep dredge project, which would allow the Port to proceed with the deepening of its channel to -50 feet to accommodate larger container cargo vessels. It now awaits approval by the Board of County Commissioners.

Pereira said the timing of the announcement comes at a time when the port’s cruise operations are expanding. “We are known internationally for being the cruise capital of the world,” he said, explaining that Miami is the 11th largest cargo container port in the world (just under 900,000 TEUs), and currently has about 4.1 million passengers. Companies like Carnival Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean, and Celebrity all have a presence here, and after the dredging is complete, bigger vessels can serve the area. “There will be a whole litany of brand new ships coming in as well,” he said.

The Port of Miami is exploring the possibility of “mega cruise terminal” that can handle four oasis class ships at a given time with 6,000 passengers each. “We could possibly handle 24,000 passengers simultaneously,” Pereira estimated.

The state is also planning to develop a new intermodal facility on Port lands, which will consolidate car rental facilities, taxis and buses into one building. The transit hub will also have an elevated train that will provide linkages back to the downtown.  

Pereira said the transit plan is also being pushed due to congestion in the city’s central business district. “We have 100,000 people going downtown, so once you’re filled and having a downtown that’s revitalized, you are asking for more traffic,” he said. In an effort to alleviate that, the Florida Department of Transportation is planning a tunnel that would connect the port to the interstate system. “ It is basically two tubes going from the highway under the north channel coming up into the center portion of the island and back,” he said, noting that the tunnel boring machine is one-third of the way through to the island. It is expected to reduce downtown traffic by 60% to 70%.

The Port is also working out a plan for the city’s southwest corner, also known as a the World Trade Center. But this isn’t the same one in Lower Manhattan. “This is a 36-acre site that is currently underutilized,” Pereira said, noting that a mix of uses, including apartments, retail and office, are in the works. “We are trying to reintegrate better into the city,” he adds.

The Port, which generates 176,000 direct and indirect jobs and $18 billion to the local economy, estimates that the dredging will be complete by 2014.

 For live SIOR coverage all day Friday, follow @GlobeStLIVE on Twitter.

Written testimony of U.S. Coast Guard Deputy Commandant for Operations Vice Admiral Brian Salerno and U.S. Coast Guard Director of Commercial Regulations and Standards Jeffrey Lantz for a House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation hearing titled “Regulation of the Maritime Industry: Ensuring U.S. Job Growth while Improving Environmental and Worker Safety”

Release Date: April 26, 2012

2167 Rayburn

Introduction

Good morning Chairman LoBiondo, Ranking Member Larsen, and distinguished members of the subcommittee. It is our pleasure to be here today to discuss the Coast Guard’s regulatory program.

This testimony provides an update to the testimony provided to this subcommittee in May 2011 by RADM Kevin Cook and Mr. Cal Lederer, as well as our annual report and update titled “State of Coast Guard Rulemaking Development.” In that testimony, the Coast Guard described the revised processes used by the Coast Guard to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of rulemaking development, and provided a status report of progress to date. This testimony will provide an update to that status report, but will not replicate the descriptions of those processes, which are largely unchanged.

Beginning with the establishment of the Steamboat Inspection Service, the Coast Guard has been publishing regulations for more than 150 years, with a proven track record of managing maritime risk in a manner for which benefits justify the cost of regulation. The Coast Guard continues to build upon these successes, investing in the workforce, improving process transparency, streamlining processes, and scrutinizing all regulatory actions to ensure the maritime industry operates in a safe, secure, and environmentally sound manner while promoting maritime commerce. The Coast Guard’s Regulatory Development Program has continued its success, earning dividends from program enhancements and a reinvigorated focus on the impacts of regulations allowing for increased emphasis on the requirements set forth in the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 (CGAA 2010).

Coast Guard Regulatory Program

The Coast Guard continues to see positive results from enhanced training, and internal process streamlining and improvements in an effort to meet statutory mandates. Figure 1 shows the increase in rules that have gone into effect and published following Congress’ addition of resources and the Coast Guard’s initiation of major reforms (numbers throughout this report are as of April 9, 2012). These published rules include all Final Rules (FR), Interim Rules (IR), Direct Final Rules (DFR), and Technical Amendments. As shown, the Coast Guard published 17 Final Rules in FY 2011, of which two were statutorily mandated, and ten so far in FY 2012 (dark blue in the graph), of which two were statutorily mandated, with another eight projected by the end of the fiscal year (light blue), of which one is statutorily mandated. Additionally, the Coast Guard publishes approximately 20 Notice of Proposed Rulemakings (NPRM), Advance NPRM, and Supplemental NPRM per year.

Figure 1: Published Rules That Have Gone Into Effect by Fiscal Year
*Indicates projection for 2012

 

 

We are proud to report that we have made progress on all currently active regulatory projects in the past year.

Figure 2: Number of Active Rulemaking Projects

 

 

With a significant focus on older rulemakings, the average age of rules under development has been reduced from 6.2 years at the end of FY 2009 to approximately four years at the end of FY 2011. This trend is shown in Figure 3. The Coast Guard anticipates further reductions by prioritizing the completion of older rulemaking projects—this is highlighted in the “Projected” portion of Figure 3, which projects an average age of 3.3 years by the end of FY 2012.

Figure 3: Average Age of Active Rulemaking Projects

 

 

In addition to working on traditional rulemaking projects, the Coast Guard is also working with DHS to implement the requirements of Executive Order 13563 (“Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review” January 18, 2011). Specifically, the Coast Guard is incorporating the requirements of the Executive Order into its economic analyses. Furthermore, the Coast Guard assisted in the development of the DHS-wide plan for the retrospective review of existing DHS regulations, and identified the four rules shown in Table 1 for detailed study. Each of these retrospective reviews consume rulemaking resources at approximately the same level as a large, significant rulemaking project.

 

Table 1: Regulations Undergoing Retrospective Review

Rule	Year Published
Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW)	1997
Facility Security Plans (Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002)	2004
Vessel Security Plans (Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002)	2004
Revisions to TWIC Requirements	2007

 

 

Noteworthy Publications

The Coast Guard’s annual “State of Coast Guard Rulemaking Development” and its update provide a complete list of publications and a list of highlighted projects. Of the publications made since the testimony last year, Table 2 below provides an update.

 

Table 2: Highlighted Publications

Fiscal Year	Rule (Date Published)	Phase
2011	STCW (August 1, 2011) Implements revisions to international convention on training and certification of mariners	Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
	Towing Vessel Inspection (August 11, 2011) Creates new subchapter for towing vessel inspections to meet statutory mandate	Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
	International Anti-Fouling System Certificate (September 1, 2011) Implements revisions to international convention and meets statutory mandate	Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
2012	International Anti-Fouling System Certificate (December 9, 2011) Implements revisions to international convention and meets statutory mandate	Final Rule
	Ballast Water Discharge Standard (March 23, 2012) Aligns to international ballast water convention and establishes numeric discharge standard for living organisms in ships’ ballast water discharged in U.S. waters	Final Rule
	Carbon Dioxide Fire Suppression Systems* Allows alternatives to and safety components in carbon dioxide systems increasing ship and crew safety and enhancing competitiveness.	Final Rule
	STCW* Implements revisions to international convention on training and certification of mariners	Final Rule
	Offshore Supply Vessels > 6,000 GT* Creates new regulatory structure for larger offshore supply vessels to meet statutory mandate	Interim Final Rule
	Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) Readers* Implements TWIC reader requirements and meets statutory mandate	Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
	Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act* Implements CVSSA and establishes (among other things) cruise ship crime prevention practices	Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

* Anticipated

 

 

These highlighted rules in Table 2 are illustrative of our rulemaking program, and include Congressional mandates (e.g., International Anti-Fouling System Certificate, which was required in the CGAA 2010), compliance with international conventions (e.g., STCW), and discretionary (e.g., Carbon Dioxide Fire Suppression Systems) rulemakings. The International Anti-Fouling System Certificate rule and the STCW rule enable U.S.-flagged vessels to participate in the international marketplace, demonstrating compliance with international conventions. The Carbon Dioxide Fire Suppression Systems rule provides protection for mariners from release of carbon dioxide and subsequent asphyxiation. A current list of active regulatory projects, for which information is publicly available, is maintained at www.reginfo.gov, and at http://www.uscg.mil/hq/cg5/cg523/projects.asp, which contains links to the Unified Agenda, dockets, and other information sources.

Progress on Statutory Mandates

Of the 81 rules under development, 38 are derived from, or incorporate, statutory mandates. This includes 25 projects either added or modified in response to the CGAA 2010. All 38 of these statutorily mandated projects are underway, cognizant of the deadlines specified by Congress in certain provisions. Eight are at either an Interim Rule or Final Rule stage, close to finalization/effective action. Table 3 lists those 23 rules published in the Fall 2011 Regulatory Agenda that have an associated statutory mandate.

 

Table 3: Rules with Statutory Mandate listed in the Fall 2011 Regulatory Agenda

Title	RIN	Stage
Claims Procedures Under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (USCG-2004-17697)	1625-AA03	PreRule
Potable Water Standards for Inspected Vessels	1625-AB51	PreRule
Tonnage Regulations Amendments	1625-AB74	PreRule
Approval of Classification Societies	1625-AB35	Long-term Action
Commercial Fishing Industry Vessels	1625-AA77	Long-term Action
Higher Volume Port Area-State of Washington	1625-AB75	Long-term Action
State Access to the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund (USCG-2004-19123)	1625-AA06	Long-term Action
Discharge-Removal Equipment for Vessels Carrying Oil	1625-AA02	Proposed Rule
Inspection of Towing Vessels	1625-AB06	Proposed Rule
MARPOL Annex 1 Update	1625-AB57	Proposed Rule
Marine Transportation-Related Facility Response Plans for Hazardous Substances	1625-AA12	Proposed Rule
Numbering of Undocumented Barges	1625-AA14	Proposed Rule
Outer Continental Shelf Activities	1625-AA18	Proposed Rule
Tank Vessel Response Plans for Hazardous Substances	1625-AA13	Proposed Rule
Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC); Card Reader Requirements	1625-AB21	Proposed Rule
Updates to Maritime Security	1625-AB38	Proposed Rule
Vessel Documentation User Fees--Annual Renewal Fee	1625-AB56	Proposed Rule
Great Lakes Pilotage Rates-2012 Annual Review and Adjustment	1625-AB70	Final Rule
Implementation of the 1995 Amendments to the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping (STCW) for Seafarers, 1978	1625-AA16	Final Rule
Nontank Vessel Response Plans and Other Vessel Response Plan Requirements	1625-AB27	Final Rule
Offshore Supply Vessels of at Least 6,000 GT ITC	1625-AB62	Final Rule
Revision to Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) Requirements for Mariners	1625-AB80	Final Rule
Vessel Requirements for Notices of Arrival and Departure, and Automatic Identification System	1625-AA99	Final Rule

 

Conclusion

The Coast Guard continues to work to refine processes and invest in other capabilities to enhance rulemaking development. Efforts continue to focus on analyzing regulatory alternatives so that the benefits of the rules put in place justifies the cost consistent with the requirements of E.O. 13563 and E.O. 12866. The Coast Guard’s strong partnerships with maritime stakeholders ensures that regulatory actions are in the best possible interest of all affected parties, including leveling the playing field for U.S. flag vessel operators competing in a global industry.

Thank you for your continued support and the opportunity to testify before you today. We will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

This page was last reviewed/modified on April 26, 2012.

United Maritime Group, LLC Announces Agreement to Sell U.S. United Barge Line, LLC to Ingram Barge Company

TAMPA, Fla., April 19, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- United Maritime Group, LLC ("UMG") today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell U.S. United Barge Line, LLC ("UBL"), a wholly owned barge transportation subsidiary of UMG, to Ingram Barge Company.

Based in Tampa, the subsidiaries of UMG operate businesses in the dry bulk transportation and logistics industry, including U.S. United Bulk Terminal, LLC, the largest coal and petroleum coke handling facility in the Gulf of Mexico, and U.S. United Ocean Services, LLC, which operates the largest Jones Act dry bulk ocean fleet by capacity.

"Since acquiring UBL in 2007, we have developed the business as an independent provider of barging services to the domestic and export markets for coal, petroleum coke, grain and other dry bulk commodities. We are proud of the results we have achieved with UBL and believe that the long history and exceptional reputation of the Ingram Barge Company speak to the opportunity for continued reliable service for our customers and opportunities for continued growth for our employees at UBL," said UMG Chief Executive Officer Steven Green.

The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2012, subject to receipt of applicable regulatory approvals and satisfaction or waiver or other customary closing conditions.

Ingram Barge Company is a subsidiary of Ingram Industries Inc., based in Nashville, Tennessee, which is one of America's largest privately held companies. It consists of diversified businesses in physical and digital book, on-demand printing, marine transportation, and digital fulfillment services.

BofA Merrill Lynch acted as the financial advisor to UMG, and Willkie Farr & Gallagher, LLP acted as legal counsel to UMG on the transaction.

About United Maritime GroupUnited Maritime Group is an integrated transportation company focused on serving the domestic and export coal and petroleum coke markets. UMG was acquired from TECO Energy in December 2007 by an investment group, including Greenstreet Equity Partners LLC, an affiliate of Greenstreet Partners LP, a private investment company, Jefferies Capital Partners, a middle-market private equity investment group, AMCI Capital L.P., a joint venture between the owners of privately held American Metals and Coal International, Inc., a global coal and resources firm, and affiliates of First Reserve Corporation, a leading investment firm specializing in the energy industry. For more information on UMG, visit our website at www.unitedmaritimegroup.com .

Forward-Looking StatementsThis announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve significant risks and uncertainties. All statements that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements, including: statements that are preceded by, followed by, or that include the words "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects" or similar expressions; statements regarding the anticipated timing of filings and approvals relating to the transaction; statements regarding the expected timing of the completion of the transaction; statements regarding the ability to complete the transaction considering the various closing conditions; and any statements of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. Investors and other interested parties are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of risks and uncertainties that are subject to change based on factors that are, in many instances, beyond UMG's control. Risks and uncertainties that could cause results to differ from expectations include uncertainties as to the timing of the closing of the transaction described in this announcement, the possibility that various closing conditions for the transaction may not be satisfied or waived, and other risks and uncertainties discussed in documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission by UMG. Accordingly, no assurances can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will occur or, if any of them do, what impact they will have on UMG's results of operations or financial condition. UMG does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

SOURCE United Maritime Group, LLC

Pm Unveils Agenda For Grand Bahama

 

#BY DENISE MAYCOCK

#Tribune Freeport Reporter

#dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

#FREEPORT - Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham unveiled the FNM's "Recovery and Growth Agenda for Grand Bahama", which he said will restore and strengthen the island's economy.

#He said a Grand Bahama Development Board will be created to promote the further development of business on the island.

#"We intend to utilise Grand Bahama as a major hub for promoting and incentivising the establishment of both an aircraft registry and a yacht registry," Mr Ingraham told supporters in Grand Bahama on Saturday.

#He stressed that the FNM has big plans for the island.

#Mr Ingraham said his government will use the island's unique location and the Grand Bahama Transshipment Centre and adjacent land to facilitate the development of a "logistic distribution hub" for international cargo in an "effective" free trade zone.

#He believes this will provide a significant boost to Grand Bahama's economy in many areas.

#The prime minister revealed that the FNM will also implement the "Back to the Island Initiative" to attract investment from Bahamians overseas.

#To achieve this, he said, the Bahamas Investment Authority will set up an Economic and Development Council of Bahamians Overseas.

#"The council will advise the government in locating and promoting investment in the Bahamas by the Bahamian diaspora throughout the world.

#"Just like we want Bahamians to go back to the islands, we want people of Bahamian birth or ancestry overseas to invest in the Bahamas.

#"We hope that such a council may also encourage Bahamians overseas to give back in terms of scholarships and other assistance to help develop the talent of young Bahamians," he said.

#Mr Ingraham said the Recovery and Growth Agenda would focus on conducting strategic overseas investment promotions in Latin America and Asia.

#The prime minister said that in the first year of their next term, he will lead an economic and trade mission to Brazil.

#"We also need to be bolder in going after markets in Brazil and Latin America in terms of foreign direct investment, tourism, financial services, maritime services, general trade and cultural exchanges," he said.

#"Just as I have led other such missions before, including previously to Latin America, I will do so again next term.

#"The new Brand Bahamas, similar to the Incredible India campaign, will feature the islands of the Bahamas as a stunningly beautiful, opportunity-rich environment that is stable and strategically located," he said.

#Mr Ingraham also revealed that the government intends to expand the scope of the public sector in Grand Bahama by relocating two government departments here.

#"This will help to stimulate your economy in significant and far-reaching ways," he said.

#"By boosting Grand Bahama's critical infrastructure and the capacity of the public sector here, we are improving the conditions for growth."

#Mr Ingraham said the FNM plans to work with the Grand Bahama Port Authority to improve the prospects for the island.

#"They have ambitious plans, a number of which we will collaborate on in our next term.

#"The Port Authority is moving in a new direction. It is a direction we find quite promising and encouraging," he said.

 

 

By Alfonso Chardy

achardy@ElNuevoHerald.com

 

Besides, it only cost $22 million and after Heat season, only downtown workers will be inconvenienced!

 

A new $22-million Port of Miami rail track for freight trains is nearly ready after nine months of construction, according to Florida East Coast Railway (FEC).

Husein Cumber, an FEC spokesman, told El Nuevo Herald during a recent tour of the project that the first train will run later this year, likely in the fourth quarter and well after basketball season ends at AmericanAirlines Arena, located next to the track at the seaport entrance.

“We will let the Miami Heat win their championship and will start after that,” said Cumber, jokingly.

FEC executives have been in close contact with arena and City of Miami officials so that the new service will have the least impact on downtown activity, mainly in the vicinity of the rail crossing next to the arena.

Cumber said there will be no train service before or after events in the arena to avoid further tying up traffic. Traffic congestion on roads around the arena increases significantly before and after events.

Initially the service would feature one train – one leaving the port with cargo and one coming back empty, said Cumber.

“We support the project, but raised concerns as to the possible impact on our stakeholders downtown,” said Javier Betancourt, deputy director of the Downtown Development Authority. “The FEC has been very good about keeping us advised on their plans and we understand the trains will be short and swift so as not to tie up traffic, particularly on Biscayne Boulevard.”

Trains will move at about 30 miles per hour and generally clear an intersection in roughly 90 seconds.

“We’re talking about a train that will go through the crossings in a typical traffic-light cycle,” said Cumber.

The 4.2-mile track runs from the port to a point near Northeast 79th Street where it connects with existing FEC tracks to Jacksonville and the Hialeah Railyard.

FEC’s main goal is to transport port cargo to Jacksonville where it can be loaded aboard trains from other railroads headed for various cities around the country. The amount and frequency of cargo eventually will dictate the trains’ schedules, said Cumber.

“So, a customer may say they want a container coming out of the Port of Miami in Atlanta or Memphis or Charlotte on a certain date at a certain time,” said Cumber. “And what we need to do is make sure the train leaves the Port of Miami in time to make a connection in Jacksonville in order to get that container to the end destination.”

Once FEC secures client commitments, Cumber said, it will draw up specific freight train itineraries.

 

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/04/13/2747438/freight-train-system-to-start.html#storylink=cpy

East Coast Ports Behind on Accommodating Bigger Ships

MEGA MASS: Cargo-container vessels are growing bigger to save on fuel efficiency and to haul more cargo in one trip.

March 23, 2012

The arrival of the largest cargo-container ship to ever sail to the United States was much ballyhooed by Southern California’s Port of Long Beach, which received the MSC Fabiola at its docks on March 16.

The gargantuan vessel, owned by Geneva-based Mediterranean Shipping Co., is capable of carrying up to 12,500 20-foot containers, making it one of the largest cargo-container ships in the world and an example of the ships of the future. It dwarfs the typical cargo ship that hauls around 8,000 containers on the trans-Pacific route between Asia and the West Coast.

When the Panama Canal expansion project is completed in 2014, the waterway will be able to handle vessels the size of the MSC Fabiola. Currently, ships carrying no more than 4,800 containers can pass through the locks.

The MSC Fabiola’s arrival was a floating advertisement for the Port of Long Beach, which, like its neighbor port, the Port of Los Angeles, can accommodate the bigger ships, which need 50-foot channels and waterways to dock.

But the two ports are worried that the post-Panamax ships, such as the MSC Fabiola, will skip California and instead use the Panama Canal to sail directly from Asia to the East Coast on an all-water route to deliver merchandise to the heaviest-populated areas of the United States. Currently, cargo containers unloaded on the West Coast are shipped to the Midwest and the East by trucks or rail.  

But will the East Coast ports be ready?

At the Port of New York and New Jersey, the largest port on the East Coast, all its channels will be deepened in time for the expanded Panama Canal. Yet there is one very tall hurdle: the Bayonne Bridge, which connects Staten Island, N.Y., to New Jersey.

Completed in 1931, the bridge has an air draft of only 151 feet, which is fine for a ship carrying 8,000 containers but not high enough for the mega ships.

With the majority of the port’s cargo-container terminals to the west of the Bayonne Bridge, bigger cargo vessels can’t clear the bridge to reach the terminals from the Atlantic. Port officials have set out to alter the steel expanse with a project that won’t be completed until 2016. “We have a fix in place,” said Richard Larrabee, director of port commerce at the Port of New York and New Jersey, who spoke at the recent Trans-Pacific Maritime conference in Long Beach, Calif. “We will raise the road bed by 2016 to 215 feet.”

The $1 billion project is complicated. Two lanes of the four-lane roadway will be closed to raise one side of the thoroughfare. After that portion is completed and reopened, the other two lanes will be closed and raised.

Modernization projects are also going slowly at the second-largest port on the East Coast, the Port of Savannah in Georgia. Port officials there are undertaking a project to deepen 32 miles of the Savannah River, which connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Port of Savannah, by six feet, making it 48 feet deep. Because the river is under federal jurisdiction, the port has been wading through years of government bureaucracy. “Reconnaissance started on this project in 1996,” said a frustrated Curtis Foltz, executive director of the Georgia Ports Authority. “It was authorized by Congress in 1999, and the study has just been completed. We have spent 12 years and $40 million studying the need to deepen this river.”

He said the Savannah River project won’t be completed until the end of 2016, missing the deadline to accept the mega ships passing through the Panama Canal. That timeline might be delayed by lawsuits filed by environmental groups.

However, the Port of Savannah has the ability to receive vessels carrying as many as 9,200 20-foot cargo containers, Foltz said.

In neighboring South Carolina, Port of Charleston officials are playing catch-up with Georgia. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recently authorized a project to deepen the port’s harbor from 45 feet to 50 feet, said Jim Newsome, president and chief executive of the South Carolina Ports Authority. The project hasn’t started yet, but Newsome wants to be ready by 2014 because nearly half the cargo-container ships plying the trade routes will be transporting between 5,000 to 18,000 containers per ship. “There are too many large ships not to deploy them on long routes [from Asia through the Panama Canal to the East Coast].”

The Port of Miami was planning to start its dredging project this summer, but that has been put on hold while the port answers legal challenges made by various environmental groups that want to protect Biscayne Bay and the local bird population.

Only two East Coast ports have gotten their docks into ship-shape form to handle the mega-ship onslaught. The Port of Virginia and the Port of Baltimore have successfully dredged their channels to 50 feet and are ready for business.

The smaller Port of Baltimore has a 50-foot channel and a 50-foot container berth.

The Port of Virginia includes four marine terminals in Hampton Roads. Hampton Roads now has a 50-foot-deep channel and authorization to deepen it to 55 feet.

“We are the biggest, deepest, newest and the best,” boasted Jerry Bridges, executive director of the Virginia Port Authority, who was at the same maritime conference as the other port directors. “We are determined to set ourselves apart.”

Meanwhile, the Port of Los Angeles is able to accept mega ships at its outer piers. And a project to deepen the main channel to 53 feet is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

New Florida law prohibits Miami-Dade, other governments from hiring companies tied to Cuba
By Patricia Mazzei and Martha Brannigan The Miami Herald
 Florida legislators have voted to restrict state and local governments from inking contracts with companies tied to Cuba or Syria. The measure appeared directed at one of Miami-Dade County government’s largest contractors, Odebrecht USA.
By Patricia Mazzei and Martha Brannigan
pmazzei@MiamiHerald.com
Delving into Miami-Dade’s tricky exile politics, Florida lawmakers passed sweeping but little-noticed legislation this session prohibiting local governments from hiring companies that do business with Cuba.
The law appears to target one of the county’s largest contractors: Odebrecht USA, the Coral Gables-based subsidiary of the giant Brazilian conglomerate. The parent company’s Cuban affiliate is participating in a major expansion at the Port of Mariel.
Miami-Dade legislators, with near-unanimous support of the Florida House of Representatives and Senate, pushed the bill as a way to keep taxpayer dollars out of the hands of repressive regimes. The law also applies to companies that work in Syria, which, like Cuba, is on the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism.
“It puts the decision on the companies that are affected,” said Rep. Michael Bileca, a Miami Republican and one of the bill’s sponsors. “Do they want to do business in Florida, or do they want to do business in these countries?”
Yet a major portion of the legislation, which applies to contracts worth at least $1 million, seems likely to face a court challenge for interfering with the federal government’s power to set foreign policy, experts said.
Statutes limiting local governments’ contracting decisions based on the vendor’s international work oversteps a state’s power, said Dan O’Flaherty, vice president of the Washington D.C.-based National Foreign Trade Council, which advocates trade with Cuba.
“It’s unconstitutional,” he said, citing a 2000 Trade Council case in which the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a Massachusetts law restricting state businesses from dealing with companies with ties to Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.
“States are barred by the Supreme Court decision from enacting procurement sanctions targeting companies doing business in foreign country ‘X,’ ” added O’Flaherty, whose organization sent letters to Gov. Rick Scott and House and Senate leaders in opposition.
In general, state and local governments are barred from setting policy that conflicts with federal law.
A Florida House staff analysis suggested Congress has authorized the type of contractual restrictions in the legislation, which takes effect July 1 and is not retroactive. But Miami-Dade has lost past battles over Cuba policy.
In 2007, county attorneys advised that Miami-Dade couldn’t consider contractors’ Cuba ties in awarding the Port of Miami tunnel project. Activists opposed giving work to Bouygues Travaux Publics because an affiliate of the French firm built 11 resorts in ventures with the Cuban military.
And in 2000, a federal judge struck down the county’s “Cuba affidavits,” which tried to deny funding to nonprofits with ties to the island.
Bruce Rogow, who challenged that policy, predicted the new law — if it passes muster with the governor — won’t stand.
“It’s unenforceable,” said Rogow, a constitutional law professor at Nova Southeastern University. “If there is no federal law making it illegal to do business with Cuba or Syria, state law can’t make it so.”
Not so, countered Mauricio Claver-Carone, director of pro-embargo U.S.-Cuba Democracy Political Action Committee.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/03/13/2692159/new-florida-law-prohibits-miami.html#storylink=cpy

March 2, 2012

Business as Government: Capitalizing on Disaster in Post-Earthquake Haiti

by DeepaPanchang

by Deepa Panchang and Beverly Bell

“I am optimistic that in 18 months, yes, we will be autonomous in our decisions. But right now I have to assume... that we are not.”[i] With these words, Haiti’s Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive watched a swath of his government’s decision-making power shift into foreign hands in early 2010.

• Sign from a Port-au-Prince protest in October 2011, declaring “IHRC = Occupation. Long live a sovereign Haiti.” Photo: Ansel Herz. •

It's one thing to privatize government services. Since the earthquake, US firms have actually been involved in privatizing governance – in fact, the governance of another country. Corporations with little to no knowledge of Haiti were brought in as volunteers to plan, kick off, and even staff the team with the single greatest operational influence over shaping the reconstruction model for the year after the quake, the Interim Haiti Reconstruction Commission (IHRC).

The IHRC was created by the Haitian parliament in April 2010 to direct post-earthquake reconstruction. Its mandate was to oversee rebuilding efforts through the $11 billion in pledges of international aid, including approving policies, projects, and budgeting. The World Bank was to manage the money. In creating and investing this body with its broad power, Parliament conducted a constitutional coup on April 15. Whereas the constitution mandates shared governance by an executive, a parliament, and a judiciary, the IHRC shifted it to the executive and the international community. The Parliament voted to give the IHRC the power to do, effectively, whatever it wanted. The only oversight measure left the Haitian government was veto power by the president.[ii]

Given the corporate philosophies of the firms that designed it, the resultant features of the IHRC were hardly surprising. The IHRC’s 26 board members were elected by no one and were accountable to no one. Half were foreign, including representatives of other governments, multilateral financial institutions, and non-governmental organizations. An international development consultant contracted by the IHRC, speaking with the Haiti Support Group, said, “Look, you have to realize the IHRC was not intended to work as a structure or entity for Haiti or Haitians. It was simply designed as a vehicle for donors to funnel multinationals’ and NGOs’ project contracts.”[iii]

McKinsey and Company, a US management consulting firm, was one of the firms that came in to help "design" and "launch" the IHRC.[iv] A background interview with an official very close to the process showed the Haitian government at the beck and call of McKinsey as it structured the commission and determined membership and decision-making processes. (All these aspects later received vehement criticism from Haitian civil society.) At the very first meeting, according to official minutes, it was McKinsey’s lead consultants who “made a presentation to the Board regarding the mission, mandate, structure, and operations of the IHRC.”[v] The consultants sat in on subsequent meetings as well.[vi]

McKinsey & Co. performed its services pro bono. Whether paid or not, the post was a lucrative one; it well-positioned the firm both to influence future contracts and to shape a climate favorable to business. A 2010 World Economic Forum document explicitly stated that “McKinsey helps coordinate with partners to channel interest from the private sector and connect would-be donors and investors to opportunities in Haiti.”[vii]

McKinsey was a natural choice for the job because of its former managing director’s long-time personal and political ties to Bill Clinton, who serves as UN Special Envoy to Haiti and was co-chair of the IHRC board. The firm was also a prime candidate because it advances the paradigm of ‘government as business,’ serving many governments around the world.[viii] As one example, McKinsey played a key role in developing the framework for the reconstruction commissions in Indonesia and Sri Lanka after the Indian Ocean tsunami which, as with the IHRC, involved infusing foreign private sector individuals into policy-making. This was another case in which the local population was excluded from having a say in its own future following another disaster; civil society groups denounced the Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR in Bahasa) for being extremely centralized and discounting civil society voices.[ix]

McKinsey came under fire again after Hurricane Katrina and the flood of New Orleans for work it had done prior to the storm. McKinsey helped major insurance companies develop tactics that stalled court proceedings and delayed payments that, in practice, allowed them to avoid paying out claims to their clients who suffered in natural disasters or accidents. Lawsuits against insurance companies asserted that McKinsey’s pre-Katrina advice, particularly to Allstate, effectively helped insurers cheat their customers.[x]

Another US firm, Korn/Ferry International, came on board to head-hunt the executive director of the IHRC. This was to replace the initial staffing that had been provided by the Clinton Foundation, International Development Bank, and the governments of the US and Canada.[xi] Korn/Ferry circulated a job announcement, in English, through politically connected circles in the US and Haiti, as though it were hiring for any profit-oriented business instead of for a team that was making major decisions in the name of a nation and its well-being. The announcement noted that, “Leadership experience in highly efficient and structured organizations, such as the military, is an advantage.”

Korn/Ferry provides recruitment services for both corporate and government positions, and keeps its finger on the pulse of the increasing overlap of the two. It even published a report encouraging companies to hire leadership with government and policy backgrounds and vice versa, in what it called a "new marriage between business and government.”[xii]

Vesting foreign enterprises with political power is fundamentally anti-democratic. If US firms’ performance in post-earthquake governance is any example, it is a frightening indicator of what might emerge with even greater participation in decision-making, as mandated by the redevelopment blueprint published in March 2010 by the Haitian government and international community.

As ineffectual as the Haitian government may be, its functions can’t be outsourced. Haiti needs a government with responsibility to the citizenry who elected it and the ability to protect their rights. The pursuits of foreign firms – making governance decisions about rebuilding, paving the way for other firms’ Haitian debuts, racking up humanitarian clout – have been at the expense of Haitians still struggling for basic needs and democratic power.
The public good requires a public sector which can guarantee health, education, adequate food, water, housing, employment, agriculture, and civil liberties. It requires more than unaccountable foreign agencies and private business that can and do pull out when they like.

Deepa Panchang is the Education and Outreach Coordinator for Other Worlds. She has worked in advocacy for human rights in Haiti since the 2010 earthquake.

Beverly Bell has worked with Haitian social movements for over 30 years. She is also author of the book Walking on Fire: Haitian Women's Stories of Survival and Resistance and is working on the forthcoming book, Fault Lines: Views across Haiti’s New Divide. She coordinates Other Worlds, which promotes social and economic alternatives. She is also associate fellow of the Institute for Policy Studies.
You can access all of Other Worlds’ past articles regarding post-earthquake Haiti here.

Copyleft Other Worlds. You may reprint this article in whole or in part. Please credit any text or original research you use to Deepa Panchang and Beverly Bell, Other Worlds.

 

U.S. mayors: Surge in exports key to economic growth

Published On: Feb 24 2012 02:23:53 PM EST

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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -

Exports in 40 metro areas, including many far from ports, have the potential to grow by 70 percent and higher during this decade, projects a report released Friday by the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Jacksonville.

The report highlights the urgent need for nation-building as the country's mayors called for last June, when they urged the President to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and redirect war dollars for railways, roads, bridges and ports.

The report, entitled U.S. Metro Economies: Exports in the Next Decade, projects that exports will outpace imports by 2020, growing an average 8 percent annually. A copy of the report and its key findings can be obtained at www.usmayors.org.

USCM President and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said: "If you're serious about creating jobs, you have to be serious about expanding exports. Ninety-five percent of the world's consumers are outside of the United States. To help businesses get their products from cities across the United States to markets around the world, we need to invest in our roads, bridges, ports and rail systems."

The report, prepared by IHS Global Insight, finds that over the coming decade (2011-2020), exports will account for nearly 40 percent of real U.S. Gross Domestic Product growth, a dramatic increase over the last decade, when exports accounted for 26.5 percent of real GDP growth.

"This could open the flood gates to more jobs across the country," said Jacksonville Mayor Alvin Brown, chair of USCM's Metro Exports and Ports Task Force. "In an increasingly globalized economy, it is vital that the U.S. is able to take advantage of the economic opportunities opening up around the world. To do so, we must get moving on improving and expanding our roads and railways and modernizing our ports, all of which are in need of immediate attention."

Cities and their metro areas dominate the U.S. export market, accounting for 88 percent of merchandise value and housing all the nation's major ports. Over the last few years, foreign trade had grown tremendously in metro regions. From 2005-08, export merchandise value increased in 300 cities, expanded by more than 50 percent in 168 of them, and doubled in 70.

The affect of exports on the local economies in many small metro areas is even more pronounced. In the Kingsport-Bristol metro region, for example, exports are nearly 60 percent as large as GMP (gross metropolitan product), followed by Peoria with 51.6 percent.

"International trade has been one of the few fiscal bright spots as the nation slowly emerges from the recession, and it is almost entirely centered on our metro areas," said Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, USCM's vice-chair of Task Force on Metro Exports and Ports. "So, the real question now for mayors, governors and the federal government is how can we maximize the potential growth of our exports and get products abroad in the most cost-effective manner?"

At least 70 local leaders, including mayors, port directors and trade specialists were meeting in Jacksonville on Friday and Saturday to develop a national agenda that expands exports, improves infrastructure and modernizes ports. Currently, only 1 percent of U.S. businesses export and 58 percent of those businesses export to only one market.

"Demand for U.S. exports will be a vital driver of economic growth in the coming decades and there is no doubt that metro areas will play a crucial role in enabling the nation to reap the benefits of international trade," said Tom Cochran, USCM CEO and executive director. "Congress, the White House and the presidential hopefuls should make no mistake: exports can spur the job creation our country longs for and generate the economic activity essential for the nation to prosper."

 Cargo chasing records again in South Florida

 

By DOUGLAS HANKS The Miami Herald
 Imports and exports continue hitting record numbers, though a new gold rush skews the stats a bit. South Florida cargo levels still chasing past highs at the ports.
By DOUGLAS HANKS
dhanks@MiamiHerald.com
South Florida’s roaring trade recovery continues, with an asterisk.

The most closely watched trade measure — the dollar value of cargo shipped in and out of South Florida ports — soared to new heights at the end of 2011. Recently released figures show Port Everglades and Port Miami combined to hit an average of $10 billion in December. That’s almost 20 percent higher than just a year ago and 40 percent higher than in December 2007, when the national recession officially began.
But part of the boost came from a run on all things gold as precious metals soared in value during the volatile recession and recovery. Scraps of precious metals amounted to the top export from the Miami Customs District last year, according to worldcityweb.com, and Switzerland — a conduit for the gold trade — emerged as the region’s No. 3 trade partner behind Brazil and Colombia. (Venezuela was No. 4 and China No. 5.)
Cargo shipments as measured by container space still have not recovered to their past peaks. In the fall, container volume was up about 7 percent from the prior year but still 5 percent off a record set in the spring of 2007.
Seven months after that peak in April 2007, the national economy officially entered its downturn. So when South Florida cargo moves back into an expansion mode, it will be a milestone definitely worth celebrating.
The Miami Herald’s Economic Time Machine tracks 60 local indicators in an effort to chart South Florida’s recovery from the Great Recession. By comparing current conditions to where they were before the downturn, the ETM attempts to measure how far back the recession set the economy. The answer so far: June 2002. Visit ETM headquarters at miamiherald.com/economic-time-machine for the latest updates.