Under the city government, the Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners is the port authority for the Port of Long Beach. Since 1916, the Board has been responsible for promoting, developing, and setting policy for the Port of Long Beach and for managing the Harbor Department. The Mayor of Long Beach appoints, and the City Council confirms the Harbor Commissioners.

Container Terminal

Photo by biofriendly

The Port of Long Beach began its Centennial celebrations anniversary on June 28, 2011, with a day of events, tours, and entertainment. Second only to Los Angeles as the busiest port in the United States, it is the world's 18th busiest container port. The Port of Long Beach moves the full range of cargoes from clothing to consumer electronics. Specialized terminals in the Port of Long Beach handle automobiles, petroleum, lumber, steel, cement, and many other products. The Port of Long Beach is an important component of Southern California's regional economy, supporting 30 thousand jobs in the City of Long Beach, 316 thousand jobs in the region, and some 1.4 million jobs across the country.

Trade with seaports in East Asia makes up the largest part of shipments moving through the Port of Long Beach. Measured by tonnage, the Port of Long Beach's major trading partners include China, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Viet man, Taiwan, Iraq, Indonesia, Ecuador, and Australia.

The leading imports handled in the Port of Long Beach include crude oil, electronics, plastics, furniture, and clothing. The major exports moving through the Port of Long Beach are petroleum coke and petroleum bulk, chemicals, waste paper, and foods.

The Port of Long Beach handled 154.4 million tons of cargo from September 2010 to September 2011 carried by almost 4.9 thousand vessels and valued at over $140 billion. Port of Long Beach municipal berths handled a total of 154.2 million tons of cargo, including 113 million tons of inbound cargo (96.9 million tons of foreign cargo) and 41.3 million tons of outbound cargo (36.2 million tons of foreign cargo). Private berths handled a total of 191.6 thousand tons of cargo. During the same period, the Port of Long Beach handled a total of almost 6.3 million TEUs of containerized cargo, including 3.1 million inbound loaded containers, 1.6 million outbound loaded containers, and 1.6 million empty containers.

Cargoes moving through the Port of Long Beach from September 2010 to September 2011 included almost 9.5 million tons of general cargo, 675.4 thousand tons of dry bulk, and 3.0 million tons of liquid bulk. Within the general cargo category, the Port of Long Beach handled 9.3 million tons of containerized cargo, 103.5 thousand tons of steel and breakbulk, 24.2 thousand tons of vehicles, and 12.9 thousand tons of lumber.

The Port of Long Beach covers almost 1.3 thousand hectares of land and contains ten piers with 80 berths that are served by 66 post-Panamax gantry cranes. The Port of Long Beach's major trading partners are located in East Asia, accounting for over 90% of the shipments passing through the port. The Port of Long Beach's top trading partners include China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Malaysia. Outside East Asia, the Port of Long Beach also has strong trade relationships with Mexico, Iraq, and Ecuador.

The Port of Long Beach operates Pier F, Berth F201 as a stand-by berth. With a total terminal area of 1.7 thousand square meters (18 thousand square feet), this Port of Long Beach berth is 183 meters (600 feet) long with alongside depth of 9.8 meters (32 feet). There is open storage area of 1.1 thousand square meters (12 thousand square feet) at the berth.

The Port of Long Beach has undertaken a major project to modify two aging facilities that are not efficient today. The nine-year project will accommodate increasing cargo-handling demands, provide about 14 thousand new jobs, and improve air quality in the area. The Port of Long Beach will combine the two facilities into one state-of-the-art terminal, upgrade wharves and storage, and expand the on-dock rail yard.

• Container terminals

Container Terminal

Photo by Charles Csavossy

Containers moving through the Port of Long Beach make up one-third of all containers in California ports and one-quarter of all ports on the West Coast. They represent almost one out of every five containers moving through United States ports. The Port of Long Beach has seven main container terminals.

Handling general cargo in containers, the Port of Long Beach's Pier T, Berths T132 through T140, is operated by Total Terminals International. The terminal covers 155.8 hectares and contains 1.5 thousand meters (five thousand feet) of berths with alongside depth of 16.8 meters (55 feet). The terminal is equipped with 14 gantry cranes with outreach capacity of 22 containers across. This Port of Long Beach terminal contains 108.1 hectares of open storage areas that include 1850 reefer outlets and on-dock rail with capacity for four trains.

Also handling general cargo in containers at the Port of Long Beach, International Transportation Service operates the terminal at Pier G, Berths G226 through G236. The terminal covers 99.6 hectares and contains over 1.9 thousand meters (6.4 thousand feet) of berths with alongside depths from 11 to 12.8 meters (42 to 52 feet). This Port of Long Beach terminal contains 35 hectares of open storage with capacity for 12.8 thousand TEUs, including 384 reefer outlets and 4000 TEU chassis slots.

The berths at the Port of Long Beach's Pier G International Transportation Service terminal are equipped with 17 gantry cranes. Of those cranes, six have outreach of 19 containers across, seven have outreach of 16 containers across, and four have outreach of 13 containers across. This Port of Long Beach terminal has eleven 40-long-ton and seven 30-long-ton transtainers. The terminal has a Container Freight Station of 6.5 thousand square meters (70 thousand square feet) and on-dock rail service.

The Port of Long Beach Container Terminal, at Berths F6 through F10 at Pier F, covers an area of 41.3 hectares and contains 838 meters (2.7 thousand feet) of berths with alongside depth of 15.2 meters (50 feet). The terminal contains almost 30 hectares of open storage area and ground capacity for ten thousand TEUs, including 240 reefer outlets, 3600 FEU chassis slots, and 504 FEU chassis stacked vertically. This Port of Long Beach terminal is served by on-dock rail transfer facilities and equipped with seven gantry cranes. Of these cranes, two have reach of 22 containers across and five have reach of 17 containers across.

The Pacific Container Terminal at the Port of Long Beach is operated by Pacific Maritime Services, handling general cargo in containers. The terminal is located at Pier J, Berths J243 through J247 and Berths J266 through J270. Covering an area of 103.6 hectares in the Port of Long Beach, the terminal contains almost 1800 meters (5900 feet) of berths with alongside depths from 12.8 to 15.2 meters (49-50 feet).

Container Terminal

Photo by James R. Tourtellotte

The berths at the Port of Long Beach's Pacific Container Terminal are equipped with 15 gantry cranes, nine with reach of 24 containers across and six with outreach of 20 containers across. The terminal has capacity to store 3001 wheeled imports, 6228 TEUs ground imports, and 6088 TEUs of empty containers. This Port of Long Beach terminal offers complete reefer container service, including 685 wheeled reefer outlets. Container and chassis repairs are also available. The Port of Long Beach's Pacific Container Terminal also offers an on-dock rail container transfer facility.

At Pier A, Berths A88 through A96, SSAT Long Beach LLC operates the SSA Terminals at the Port of Long Beach, handling general cargo in containers. The terminal covers almost 81 hectares and contains almost 1.1 thousand meters (3.6 thousand feet) of berths with alongside depth of 15.2 meters (50 feet). The berths are equipped with ten gantry cranes with outreach of 21 containers across.

The Port of Long Beach's SSAT Long Beach terminal includes 36.4 hectares of open storage area served by an on-dock rail yard with capacity for two 2.4 thousand meter (eight thousand foot) stack trains operating at the same time. This Port of Long Beach terminal has capacity for storing 24 thousand TEUs and is equipped with 652 reefer outlets. The Port of Long Beach's SSA Terminal's main gate offers 16 entry/exit lanes as well as a second gate with 13 more entry/exit lanes.

Gantry Cranes at POLB
Catalina Island in the background

Photo by Regular Daddy

The Port of Long Beach's SSA Terminals also has facilities at Pier C, Berths C60 through C62, that handle containerized general cargo and automobiles. The terminal covers 28.3 hectares and contains 549 meters (1800 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 12.8 meters (42 feet).

The berths at this SSA Terminals facility in the Port of Long Beach are equipped with three gantry cranes with outreach of 17 containers across. The terminal includes 23.2 hectares of open storage area in the Port of Long Beach with capacity for 4000 grounded TEUs. It contains 1384 40-foot chassis slots, 2014 FEU stacked, and 114 spaces for reefer boxes. The terminal also has another seven hectares used as an off-dock container yard.

• Bulk and breakbulk terminals

The Port of Long Beach has seven major terminals for dry bulk cargoes that are measured by volume (usually tons) rather than by count (as for containers). Dry bulk cargoes moving through the Port of Long Beach include things like gypsum, petroleum coke, grains, and salt.

Handling gypsum, Georgia-Pacific Gypsum operates the terminal at the Port of Long Beach's Pier D, Berth D46. Handling cargoes of bulk gypsum, the terminal covers 3.6 hectares and has 195 meters (640 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 12.2 meters (40 feet). The G-P Gypsum terminal in the Port of Long Beach is equipped with an adjustable elevated receiving hopper with an elevated electric belt conveyor system that connects the berth with a 40-thousand-ton capacity storage building. The terminal can process 800 to 900 tons per hour.

Also handling bulk gypsum at Pier B, Berth B82, New NGC Inc. operates the National Gypsum terminal in the Port of Long Beach. The terminal covers 7.6 hectares and has 198 meters (650 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 11.6 meters 38 feet). Handling bulk gypsum, the Port of Long Beach National Gypsum terminal contains 1.5 acres of open storage area and is equipped with an elevated electric belt conveyor system that extends to a 40-thousand tons capacity storage building. It also has capacity to process from 800 to 900 tons per hour.

Koch Carbon operates a terminal at the Port of Long Beach's Pier F Berth F211 that handles petroleum coke and prilled sulfur. The terminal covers over 2.8 hectares and has 335 meters (1100 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 12.2 meters (40 feet). The terminal has 6.7 acres of open storage area in the Port of Long Beach where petroleum coke is received, stored, blended, and loaded petroleum coke. It also offers terminal services for both imports and exports of prilled sulfur and other bulk cargoes.

Intermodal Ship-to-Rail Transfer

Photo by Williamborg

Metro Ports operates the Port of Long Beach terminal at Pier G, Berths G212 through G215, handling petroleum coke, coal, soda ash, borax, potash, sodium sulfate, concentrates, and prilled sulfur. This Port of Long Beach terminal covers 23 acres and includes 579 meters (1900 feet) of berths with alongside depths from 12.2 to 15.2 meters (40-50 feet). The terminal has covered storage with capacity for 540 thousand tons.

The Port of Long Beach's Metro Ports terminal has two electric traveling bulk ship-loaders. Loader 1 has outreach of 27.7 meters (91 feet) and clear height of 20.1 meters (66 feet). Its traveling distance is 213.4 meters (700 feet), and its designed capacity is 3500 tons per hour. Working 16 hours per day, the actual performance for Loader 1 is from 1500 to 2000 tons per hour.

Loader 2 in the Metro Ports terminal at the Port of Long Beach has outreach of 24.1 meters (79 feet) and traveling distance of 213.4 meters (700 feet). With designed capacity for five thousand tons per hour, its actual performance (working 16 hours per day) has been from 2500 to 3500 tons per hour. It is served by two 100-car unit trains. With one rotary- and three bottom-dump systems, bulk materials are handled by one 1.2-meter (48-inch) and one 1.9-meter (72-inch) belt conveyor system that extend from the ship-loader through a tunnel from the storage facilities.

The Port of Long Beach's Pier F, Berth F208, is operated by Mitsubishi Cement Corporation to handle bulk cement. The terminal covers 4.2 acres and contains 168 meters (550 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 12 meters (40 feet). With warehouse capacity for 52 thousand metric tons of bulk cement, this Port of Long Beach terminal has two pneumatic ship unloaders with capacity for 800 and 180 metric tons per hour.

Also handling cargoes of bulk cement in the Port of Long Beach, CEMEX USA operates the terminal at Pier D, Berth D32. The terminal covers two acres and contains 270 meters (680 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 11 meters (36 feet). The CEMEX terminal in the Port of Long Beach includes over 8.1 thousand square meters (87.5 thousand square feet) of open storage area and has silo capacity for 50 thousand tons. Its screw-type unloader can move from 600 to 800 tons per hour and unloads to a conveyor system connected to the silos. The terminal has truck-loading spouts as well.

Handling bulk salt, the Port of Long Beach's Pier F Berth210 is operated by Morton Salt Company. The terminal covers over five acres and contains 213 meters (700 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 12.2 meters (40 feet). It includes 2.7 acres of open storage area, and a packaging plant is adjacent to this Port of Long Beach terminal. The berth is equipped with a movable incline elevated electric belt conveyor system with a receiving hopper that connects the wharf to a stockpile area.

Breakbulk cargoes of steel products, lumber, and plywood are handled by Cooper/T. Smith Stevedoring at the Port of Long Beach's Pier F Berths F204 and 205 at the Crescent Terminal. This Port of Long Beach terminal covers an area of 21 acres, and the berths are a total 386 meters (1265 feet) long with alongside depth of 11 meters (36 feet). The wharf area is almost three acres, and the terminal contains an open storage area of 5.5 acres and a transit shed area of 4.1 acres. This Cooper/T. Smith-operated terminal in the Port of Long Beach is equipped with a roll-on/roll-off ship ramp.

The Crescent Warehouse Company operates a forest terminal at Pier D Berths D50-D54 in the Port of Long Beach. Covering an area of 13.3 acres, the berths are 723 meters (2370 feet) long with alongside depth of 11 meters (36 feet). The wharf area at this Port of Long Beach terminal is over 1.5 acres. The terminal includes open storage area of 6.9 acres, a transit shed area of 11.4 acres, and a loading platform of 906 square meters (9.7 thousand square feet).

The Crescent Warehouse Company also operates a breakbulk facility handling steel products, lumber, plywood, large machinery, and project cargoes from lift-on/lift-off or roll-on/roll-off vessels in the Port of Long Beach. The terminal covers 22 acres, and the berths are 366 meters (1200 feet) long with alongside depth of 9.8 meters (32 feet). This Port of Long Beach terminal includes a wharf area of 1.3 acres, loading platform area of 1288 square meters (13.8 thousand square feet), open storage area of 12.2 acres, and transit shed area covering 4.3 acres. This Port of Long Beach breakbulk terminal is served by rail connections and is home to special stevedoring equipment.

POLB Pier T

Photo by Williamborg

The Fremont Forest Group Corporation operates a terminal at Pier T Berth T122 in the Port of Long Beach to handle lumber and lumber products. Covering 17 acres, the Fremont forest terminal's berths are 183 meters (600 feet) long with alongside depth of 12.2 meters (40 feet). The pier also has a 45.7-meter (150-foot) notched wharf for barges and lumber-handling equipment. The wharf area covers just over one acre. This Port of Long Beach terminal contains 7.7 acres of open storage area and 1.3 thousand square meters (15 thousand square feet) of transit shed area including three dry storage sheds. This forest terminal is also served by rail connections.

At Pier T Berth T118, SA Recycling LLC operates the Port of Long Beach's SA Recycling Terminal handling recyclable metals and steel products. The terminal covers an area of 16 acres, and its berths are 274 meters (900 feet) long with alongside depth of 11 meters (36 feet). The wharf area of 1.2 acres includes a shore-side vessel loading crane and rail connections. This Port of Long Beach terminal includes 13.5 acres of open storage area.

The Weyerhaeuser Company operates a terminal for lumber and lumber products at Pier T Berth T122 in the Port of Long Beach. The berths are 183 meters (600 feet) long with alongside depths from 9.7 to 10.6 meters (32 to 35 feet), and the terminal also has a 45.7-meter (150-foot) notched wharf for barges and lumber-handling equipment. The terminal covers 18 acres and includes a wharf area of one acre. This Port of Long Beach terminal has 9.9 acres of open storage area and transit shed space of 1.4 thousand square meters (15 thousand square feet). Additional storage is located at Berths T115 and T116.

• Oil / Liquid terminals

The Port of Long Beach has seven major liquid bulk terminals handling cargoes that include, but are not limited to, crude oil, gasoline, and a range of chemicals.

At the Port of Long Beach's Pier D Berths D30 and D31, Baker Commodities operates the terminal handling tallow, coconut oil, and cottonseed oil. The terminal covers one acre and contains 213 meters (700 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 13 meters (43 feet). Two six-inch pipelines link the Port of Long Beach's Berth D30 to storage tanks with total capacity for 6.7 million gallons. The terminal is served by rail connections.

Handling crude oil and petroleum products in the Port of Long Beach, BP Pipelines North America operates the terminal at Pier T Berth T121. The terminal covers about six acres and contains 347 meters (1140 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 23.2 meters (76 feet). The terminal can accommodate vessels from 50- to 265-thousand DWT. Storage tanks are provided at the ARCO facilities in Carson and in the Port of Long Beach's inner harbor via 24-inch and 42-inch pipelines. The terminal has four 16-inch articulated crude unloading arms and one 8-inch articulated bunker/diesel loading arm.

BP Pipelines North America also operates the Port of Long Beach terminal at Pier B Berths B76 through B80. The terminal handles petroleum products that include gasoline, blending stocks, MtBE, diesel, naphtha jet fuel, fuel oils, carbon black, and crude oil. The terminal covers about 18 acres and contains 671 meters of berths (2200 feet) with alongside depth of 14 meters (46 feet). This Port of Long Beach facility has capacity to store 1.8 million barrels and is connected to other companies by several pipelines. Eight-inch on-dock Chiksan loading arms have capacity to load from 10- to 15-thousand barrels per hour, and three vessels can be loaded/unloaded at the same time.

Handling petroleum products and bunker fuel, Chemoil Marine Terminal is located at the Port of Long Beach's Pier F Berths F209 and F211. The terminal covers five acres, and it contains 244 meters (800 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 12.2 meters (40 feet). The Chemoil Marine Terminal facility in the Port of Long Beach can store 425 thousand barrels and is equipped with a pipeline system serving ships, barges, trucks, and railcars. It also has pipeline connections to the Carson tank farm that provides petroleum products to most of the refiners and terminals in the LA Basin. This Port of Long Beach is also served by rail connections.

Container Terminal

Photo by biofriendly

Petro-Diamond Terminal Company operates the terminal at the Port of Long Beach's Pier B Berths B82 and B83. Handling gasoline, ethanol, blend stocks, diesel, and biodiesel, the terminal covers six acres and contains 323 meters (1060 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 11.6 meters (38 feet). Pipeline connections to this Port of Long Beach terminal allow petroleum products to be transferred to most Los Angeles basin refiners and common carrier pipelines. The terminal has total storage capacity for 590 thousand barrels. Two 8-inch dock hoses connect to two 10-inch dock lines that can receive as much as 12 thousand barrels per hour.

Handling crude oil, petroleum products, and bunker fuel, Tesoro Refining and Marketing operates the Port of Long Beach terminal at Pier B Berths B84 through B87. The terminal covers 11 acres and contains 604 meters (1980 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 15.8 meters (52 feet). The terminal can discharge 32 thousand barrels per hour and can store up to 245 thousand barrels in the Port of Long Beach. A 24-inch pipeline connects the dock to storage and tank farm.

The Vopak Terminal Long Beach, operated by Vopak North America, handles miscellaneous liquid bulk cargoes in the Port of Long Beach. Located at the Port of Long Beach's Pier S, Berth S101, the terminal ten acres and includes 213.4 meters (700 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 11 meters (36 feet). The terminal is served by dedicated pump and piping systems to move products to/from ships, barges, railcars, and tank trucks. This Port of Long Beach terminal has total storage capacity for 15 million gallons of product.

• Ro/Ro terminals

Owned by the Weyerhaeuser Company, Toyota Logistics Services Inc. handles automobiles at Pier B Berths 82 and B83 in the Port of Long Beach. Covering 168 acres, this Port of Long Beach terminal has 396 meters (1300 feet) of berths with alongside depth of 11.6 meters (38 feet). The wharf area is 1.4 acres, and the loading platform is 30 meters (95 feet). The terminal contains 110 acres of open storage area and transit shed area of 3.4 acres in the Port of Long Beach. In addition to being served by a rail spur, the terminal includes an office building, processing buildings, a body shop, and a car wash.

• Tug boat operators

Eleven commercial tugboat and towing companies serve the Port of Long Beach. Intership Limited provides barge and tug services for the offshore oil and gas industry. The company's fleet of accommodation work barges is used in the Port of Long Beach to supplement offshore engineering, construction, accommodations, and storage capacity.

American Marine Corporation provides specialty services such as marine contracting, commercial diving, and vessel support to the Port of Long Beach. Amnav Maritime Services provides ship-assist, barge and tanker escorts, shipyard vessel assist, over-sized equipment logistics, and vessel and barge towing services in the Port of Long Beach. The company also offers support for marine construction, salvage, emergency response efforts, and military operations in the Port of Long Beach.

Crowley Marine Services maintains a fleet of 200 roll-on/roll-off and lift-on/lift-off vessels, tugs, barges, and tankers offering deep-sea petroleum transportation, logistics, and marine contract solutions. Foss Maritime Company provides a variety of services in the Port of Long Beach that include ship assist and tanker export, ocean and harbor towing, shipyard services, lighterage and bulk handling, bunker and petroleum transportation, project cargo and logistics, and emergency response (rescue and repair).

Millennium Maritime Inc. (Harley Marine) operates a fleet of state-of-the-art tugboats in the Port of Long Beach and Los Angeles. Vessels fitted with the latest deck gear, navigation equipment, and electronics have earned the highest average bollard pull per tug. The Millennium fleet provides dependable efficient services to the Port of Long Beach's pilots and customers alike.

Pacific Tugboat Services offers ocean and harbor towing, crewboat and launch services, freight-hauling and material-expediting, marine transport and construction, and ship assist services in the Port of Long Beach. The tugs owned and operated by Sause Brothers Ocean Towing Company Inc. serve all of the biggest marine construction companies in the Port of Long Beach and Los Angeles, moving a wide range of cargo and equipment.

Sea Tow Services supports the Port of Long Beach's recreational boating community by providing marine assistance and boating safety services. Vessel Assist, the "Boat Owners' Auto Club," also serves the private and recreational boating communities in the Port of Long Beach.

• Rail and intermodal connections

The Intermodal Container Transfer Facility (ICTF) serves both the Port of Long Beach and the Port of Los Angeles to support the efficient flow of cargo through the ports. Located between the two ports at the "Terminal Island Freeway" where State Highway 103 ends, the ICTF occupies about 148 acres owned by the Port of Los Angeles. The Union Pacific Railroad operates the ICTF under a sublease with the Joint Powers Authority. In peak traffic periods, the ICTF handles as much as 2500 containers per 24-hour day. In May 2006, the Gate Allocation Program began to limit in-gate arrivals to 1500 per day to ensure the even flow of traffic.

The ICTF is a near-dock international facility that serves many shipping lines. Two major factors help the ICTF handle tremendous volumes of containers for the Port of Long Beach. The Union Pacific's Dolores Support Yard is the company's locomotive maintenance facility and temporary storage facility for trains. Used for staging empty double-stack cars and inbound/outbound trains, the Dolores facility allows the ICTF to use all but one of their working tracks for production.

The ICTF maintains an accurate inventory of containers in the facility through its Optimization Alternative Strategic Intermodal Scheduler (OASIS). Each parking space is coded so that containers can be assigned, and containers entering the facility can be logged. ICTF hostlers have on-board computers that allow real-time updates of container movements within the yard, vastly improving the ICTF's ability to manage traffic flows efficiently and accurately. The OASIS system consists of on-board computers for 59 hostler tractors and five yard-check vehicles. Back-up generators ensure that the tower and gates operate around the clock.

The ICTF serving the Port of Long Beach and the Port of Los Angeles operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Covering a total of 233.4 acres, 146 acres contain the primary terminal, and 87.4 acres hold the storage terminal. Its six loading/unloading tracks (and a seventh running track) can hold 243 conventional rail cars and 84 double-stack cars. The ten added tracks at the Dolores Support Yard can accommodate another 169 double-stack cars. The ICTF has five areas for parking containers that contain 2800 container stalls, 164 with refrigeration hook-ups.

The ICTF ensures maximum efficiency for the Port of Long Beach through its suite of container-moving equipment. This includes two Mi-Jack 1200 overhead cranes, seven Mi-Jack 1000 overhead cranes, and one Mi-Jack 850 crane. The transfer facility also has two Taylors used mainly for flips and one port packer.

The ICTF has a 16-lane all-weather computerized gate complex. It offers high security for customers. The ICTF is completely fenced, and it boasts tower-controlled locking gates, 22 closed-circuit cameras that monitor the perimeter and yards, and roving security officers.

• Port services

Jacobsen Pilot Service Inc. provides pilots for all commercial ships in the Port of Long Beach's harbor. The pilots are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Jacobsen offers 19 pilots and 11 boatmen that average about seven thousand ship movements per year.

The Marine Exchange of Southern California is a non-profit organization that strives to develop and ensure the efficient flow of maritime commerce in the region. Maintaining records of ship arrivals and departures since 1923, they have created the Maritime Information Center for the Los Angeles-Long Beach Port Complex. Their website offers information on schedules, arrival times, ship locations, and other important data. Partnering with the United States Coast Guard, the Marine Exchange's Vessel Traffic Section provides important notices, operating rules, user fees, and real-time information on vessel traffic. As the Secretariat for the Port of Long Beach Harbor Safety Committee, the website has the latest Harbor Safety Plan, tug bollard pull information, and safety notices.

Breakwater at Port of Long Beach

Photo by USGS

The Port of Long Beach is a huge busy place that supports the region's economy and provides essential services for shippers, manufacturers, importers, exporters, and non-commercial boaters. One of the best ways to learn about the Port of Long Beach is by joining one of the free community harbor tours offered on the first and third Saturdays and the second and fourth Tuesdays from May through September. Tours are posted a month in advance on the first Monday of each month at 8am when reservations are accepted, and those wishing to join the tour can make their reservation online. The Port of Long Beach tour operates from the downtown Shoreline Village at Dock 9. Tours validate parking for a reduced rate of $1 for the first two hours and $2 for each additional 20 minutes.

The Port of Long Beach has adopted a Green Port Policy with the aim of minimizing or eliminating detrimental environmental impacts from port activities. A leader among world ports, the Port of Long Beach was first to implement a Green Flag vessel speed reduction air quality program and Green Leases with environmental Covenants. The Port of Long Beach is also outfitting the container terminals with shore power so that vessels can plug into land-based power rather than burn diesel fuel while docked. The goal is to have all container berths equipped with shore power by 2020.

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