A new report released this month by the Puget Sound Maritime Air Forum heralded largely good news about efforts to curb air pollution in the Puget Sound region.
The Puget Sound Emissions Inventory (PSEI) report notes an 82% reduction in diesel particulate matter and a 10% decrease in greenhouse gas emissions from port and maritime sources in the greater Puget Sound region since 2005. The PSEI is conducted every five years with the most recent inventory occurring in 2021, in the midst of the COVID pandemic.
It was during this time that many people came to better understand the interconnectedness of our supply chain, and how vital it is to have a robust network to move goods – including food, medicine, and clothing – from point to point. This is also where the commercial trucking industry gained its status as an essential industry and rose to the challenge of reducing emissions.
Interestingly, although it was a key partner in the Air Forum’s initiative, the commercial trucking industry – one of the biggest links in the region’s supply chain – failed to rate a mention for its investments in “cleaner engine technologies.”
In fact, many owner/operators who routinely travel to Puget Sound ports rose to the occasion and made the transition to new, cleaner drayage trucks in order to operate under the new port initiative. Regrettably, it was not a smooth one.
Costs to maintain the new vehicles soared in the first year of ownership. George Mitchell, general manager for Mercer logistics, was one of the WTA members who made the switch to a lower-emission fleet of trucks.
In the first year with the new fleet, repairs were up 168%. Eventually, he would opt to lease trucks – not buy, which reduced the upfront financial burden.
“It was just failure after failure,” he said of the new trucks. “It’s not like we have a choice – [they] forced us. Either we have the truck or we’re out of business,” he said. “Now the challenge is to figure out how to buy a half million dollar electric truck. How are we going to pay for this?” he said.
“I am not against it as a business person, but you have to look at the long term economics of it.”
And therein lies the challenge: The transition to zero emission vehicles requires significant capital, especially for smaller owner/operators who don’t have the resources to buy multiple electric trucks – let alone one – for a half million dollars each. That’s a serious financial consideration for many of the small operators who service our ports every day.
Infrastructure also remains a serious concern, given the lack of charging stations for heavy duty vehicles and the time involved to charge commercial truck batteries. In this industry, time is literally money, and those costs will likely be passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices.
WTA remains an active partner in the search for economical, sustainable and practical solutions to the challenges we face as we move to the next generation of trucking. More resources – and a greater understanding of the industry itself – will help make that transition a smoother one for everyone.
