TITLE
Recommendation to request City Manager to work with the Harbor Department to conduct a study of automation at the Port of Long Beach and report back within 120 days. The study should focus on the economic impact of automation, as it relates to the local community (job loss and local businesses).
DISCUSSION
The activity of goods movement within our sea ports is one of the region's most vital economic engines. In fact, the November 2017 Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP) determined that the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles support one million jobs in California and almost three million jobs across the country; however, as vessel sizes grow, and container exchanges increase, many companies are venturing into artificial intelligent capital investments to meet these demands.
Presently, two local terminals, TraPac in the Port of Los Angeles and the Long Beach Container Terminal in the Port of Long Beach, have already implemented automated infrastructure. The new technology is electric, zero emission, and capable of handling more cargo. While we've seen expedient transitions to automated infrastructure in the mining and warehousing industries, U.S. ports have moved at a much slower pace, due to costly investment and labor resistance.
Concerns for the impact of automation on working families, surrounding communities, and the local economy have been raised by the International Longshore Warehouse Union. Similar dialogues have also occurred in forums involving the Los Angeles City Council, the Los Angeles Harbor Commission, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, and in Sacramento with the State legislature. Recently, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved an economic study of the impacts of port automation on the community, considering the potential loss of local jobs and local businesses.
?While research forecasts project the transition to fully-automated infrastructure to occur over the next ten years, local governments are in a critica...
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