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Recommendation to respectfully request that the City and Port of Long Beach move ahead with actions to apply for appropriate local, state, and federal grants and develop other funding options, while working with Southern California Edison, to develop shoreline power for our cruise terminal(s) in Long Beach.
DISCUSSION
Carnival Corporation is the world's largest company in the cruise line industry, offering a wide range of cruises for affordable prices. Their portfolio includes Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, P&O Cruises, and Cunard Line. Their customer base is diverse in terms of culture, language and leisure time preferences, and they operate a cruise terminal in the City of Long Beach.
As a result of recent meetings I had with officials of Carnival, they indicated a strong interest in securing shore side power, otherwise known as "cold ironing," for their ships that call at the Port of Long Beach. Cruise ships are the largest polluters while in port, and because they are here several times a week for many hours at a time, shore power could significantly reduce emissions while at dock. Carnival is already cold ironing at the West Coast ports of Seattle and is in the process of securing shore power at the Port of San Francisco, as well.
As the Port of Long Beach has committed to cold ironing at three terminals (BP, ITS-Kline, and Matson), the addition of shore side power at the Carnival cruise terminal would be a significant pollution reduction measure, and be a positive addition to efforts to "green" the Port of Long Beach.
Carnival officials also expressed a willingness to maximize economic development opportunities in Long Beach, including partnering with Long Beach businesses for provision of services and/or products while at dock and at sea.
The cruise industry could provide economic benefits to our city's businesses, and I believe their true economic potential is yet to be realized for our business community.
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