The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded the Port of Los Angeles an $800,000 grant to deploy more of the cleanest commercial equipment available for moving cargo. The award will pay between 25 to 40 percent of the cost to replace and upgrade 18 pieces of yard equipment at two Los Angeles container terminals, with the full complement due to be in service by fall 2018.

“We will continue to aggressively pursue these opportunities to further our efforts to use the cleanest equipment available.”said Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka.

The EPA offers competitive grants under the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) to fund projects that use diesel emission reduction technologies approved by the EPA or the California Air Resources Board. The process favors applicants like the Port that are working to improve the quality of life in neighboring communities disproportionately affected by environmental pollution and helping their regions attain federal clean air standards.

The Port of Los Angeles is America’s premier port and has a strong commitment to developing innovatively strategic and sustainable operations that benefit Southern California’s economy and quality of life. North America’s leading seaport by container volume and cargo value, the Port of Los Angeles facilitated $270 billion in trade during 2015. Port operations and commerce facilitate more than 133,000 jobs (about one in 14) in the City of Los Angeles and 479,000 jobs (or one in 18) in the five-county Southern California region. The San Pedro Bay Ports support nearly 1 million California jobs and 2.8 million nationwide.