The Port of Long Beach is about to undertake a series of infrastructure improvements intended to control petroleum coke, according to a report issued Monday by port officials.
The two-page document, received and filed by the Harbor Commission, tells of several new actions by the port that are expected to help contain coke dust, a petroleum by-product used for fuel.
Aside from health-related complaints by neighbors, a June rule change by the South Coast Air Quality Management District has put pressure on the port to change the way it handles, transports and stores coke. The rules spelled out a set of deadlines for operational as well as infrastructure improvements at the port. Some of those deadlines are in June.
At the port’s Pier G, located near the Queen Mary, the report said port officials recently filed plans to remove one of two existing open coke piles. They have also turned in designs for upgrading coke conveyors and truck washes, as well as converting a coal shed into a petroleum coke shed, among other measures.
Robert Kanter, the port’s director of planning and environmental affairs, said the port is handling this work on its own because so many different tenants lease space at Pier G. He said these tenants will contribute to the cost of the improvements.
At Pier F, the report said, Koch Carbon has filed plans for a new truck wash and water spray systems designed to control the proliferation of coke dust. Koch is the port’s main tenant at Pier F.
Both sets of proposals are being reviewed for possible environmental impact by port staff members, Kanter said. Some of that work could move forward quickly, he said, while other proposed improvements could take years.
The report also pointed out a recent change in coke-related port operations: more frequent sweeping at the Pico Avenue on- and off-ramps from the Terminal Island (47) Freeway.
Instead of twice-monthly sweeps, the report said the ramps are now being swept weekly.
