Savannah, GA - Georgia Ports Authority 2012 Port Address
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| Stephen Morton/For Savannah Morning News Georgia Ports Authority Executive Director Curtis J. Foltz spoke to a crowd of more than 1,200 at the annual State of the Port event Thursday. He said that the Authority had record cargo volumes, significant infrastructure improvements and continued environmental leadership in 2012. |
"Again, another record year for the Ports Authority," Curtis Foltz told his audience of mostly business people as he gave his annual State of the Ports Address, the GPA moved a record 2.98 million TEUs — or 20-foot container equivalents — in the year ending June 30, falling just 16,000 shy of the three million mark.
“We’ll get there this year,” he assured the group.
The Port of Savannah was second only to the Port of Los Angeles in container export volume, making it one of the most — “if not the most” — balanced ports in the country, Foltz said.
Locally, the ports boosted Savannah’s economy with an 85.7 percent occupancy rate for area distribution centers’ more than 44 million square feet. Five new shipping services were added, ending GPA’s fiscal year with 40 weekly services to Asia, the most of any port on the East Coast.
The Port of New York/New Jersey — despite its six container terminals and high volume throughput - was second with 38 weekly calls; Norfolk came in third with 33.
“To me, this translates into three natural East Coast gateways — New York/New Jersey in the Northeast, Norfolk in the Mid-Atlantic and Savannah in the Southeast,” Foltz said.
Corresponding with its growth in trade, GPA infrastructure investments guarantee streamlined truck and rail movements in and out of the terminals, he said.
A new Ga. 307 overpass, just outside the port’s main gate, was completed in June. The new overpass routes cargo trucks over a six-track expansion at one of Savannah’s two on-terminal rail yards. The 6,000-foot rail extension at the Mason Intermodal Container Transfer Facility cuts Savannah-Atlanta roundtrip rail transit by six hours, while boosting safety in surrounding Garden City by avoiding 21 at-grade rail crossings.
Use of the overpass also improves both fluidity and velocity for the 4,000-plus truckloads that come through the main gate every day, Foltz said.
The ports also made progress on the Jimmy DeLoach Parkway project, which will take 5,000 trucks a day off Ga. 21 by bringing Interstate 95 directly into the ports when it’s completed in 2015.
"Now an update on the deepening, all these things are important but this is critical," Foltz said.
The deepening project, which would take the river to 47 feet, hasn't exactly been smooth sailing. First approved in 1999, it's taken this long to get this close. "The Army Corps of Engineers has come out with an extremely strong recommendation on just how important this is to us and to the nation," Foltz told reporters.
Still, not everyone is so enthusiastic. Three environmental groups are suing, and this week the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control asked to join the suit. "The legal process will run its due course. I think (South Carolina) Governor Haley has conveyed her support and understanding that the Ports are about regional impact and regional benefit," Foltz said.
Foltz defended the science in the Corps report saying up to 250 million dollars will be spent to mitigate environmental impacts. He also says they're looking for the green light by the end of the year, and hoping legal action doesn't hold up the start of the project. "I would hope we're far enough along," he said. "And we would hope the President coming out and conveying the importance of this, we would hope ultimately that at the end of the day, the studies have supported the need to go forward."
ECONOMIC IMPACT - Georgia’s deepwater ports and inland barge terminals support more than 352,000 jobs throughout the state annually and contribute $18.5 billion in income, $66.9 billion in revenue and $2.5 billion in state and local taxes to Georgia’s economy.
The Port of Savannah was the second busiest U.S. container port for the export of American goods by tonnage in FY2012, handling 13.27 million tons. It also handled 8.1 percent of the U.S. containerized cargo volume and 11.6 percent of all U.S. containerized exports.
Resources provided by Carr Mayle, Mary. “Georgia Ports Authority marks another record year”, Savannah Morning News, September 6, 2012 http://savannahnow.com/exchange/2012-09-06/georgia-ports-authority-marks-another-record-year
Resources provided by JoAnn Merrigan. “Port of Savannah Sets New Record”, September 06, 2012 WSAV News 3
http://www2.wsav.com/news/2012/sep/06/6/state-ports-address-today-ar-4491194/
