Ports Brief: POLB Sees Second Best July and POLA to Increase Clean Air Incentives

MARAD, Port of Long Beach Announce Second-Best July on Record

LONG BEACH — Stephen Carmel, Administrator of the U.S. Maritime Administration, joined Port of Long Beach CEO Dr. Noel Hacegaba to announce our second-busiest July on record and the fourth-strongest month in the Port’s 115-year history.

The Port of Long Beach moved 928,508 twenty-foot equivalent units last month, down 1.7% from July 2025.

Imports declined a flat 0.1% to 467,461 TEUs, exports rose 14.8% to 104,843 TEUs and empty containers were down 7.4% to 356,205 TEUs.

Year-to-date, the Port of Long Beach has moved 5,758,086 TEUs through the first seven months of 2026, up 1.2% compared to the same period last year.

Details: Watch the announcement video here.

Port of Los Angeles to Increase Clean Ship, Truck Incentives

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Harbor Commission has approved an addendum to further accelerate clean air technologies and incentives as part of the Port of Los Angeles’ 2025 clean air cooperative agreement with the South Coast Air Quality Management District or South Coast AQMD and neighboring Port of Long Beach.

Under the updated agreement, the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will enhance incentives for the cleanest ocean-going vessels, establish new incentives to increase the use of zero-emission trucks, and invest $20 million toward regional charging and fueling infrastructure for zero-emission drayage trucks.

The agreement also includes implementation milestones, annual reporting and public engagement requirements to ensure transparency and accountability as the programs move forward.

Signed by both ports and the South Coast AQMD in November 2025, the initial cooperative agreement called on both ports to develop comprehensive zero-emission infrastructure plans covering all major port emission source categories, including cargo-handling equipment, harbor craft, trucks, trains and ocean-going vessels. At that time, both ports agreed to continue working with South Coast AQMD to consider additional measures to reduce emissions from higher polluting sources, like trucks and ships.

The new agreement builds on the success of the two ports’ Clean Air Action Plan or CAAP, an air quality program approved in 2006. The South Coast AQMD approved the cooperative agreement addendum earlier this month, and with the approval of the Los Angeles Harbor Commission, the addendum officially goes into effect.