Trip to Savannah

Georgia Ports Authority: Dealing in Big Cargo and Managing Sustainably

The German Delegation’s first stop in Savannah was at Georgia’s Ports Authority. As the port is growing fast and has recently become the 4th biggest in the country, we were particularly interested in learning about its environmental practices and sustainability ambitions. Government Affairs Manager Leo Beckmann provided us with a presentation on the port’s functioning and its role for U.S. and world trade. As Mr. Beckmann points out, efficient and quick cargo handling is at the heart of a sustainable port. This entails minimizing congestion, optimizing cargo management and swift turnaround of goods. The result is not only more economic, but also a more environmentally friendly handling of cargo, as emissions are reduced and unnecessary transport of empty containers can be avoided.

FURTHERMORE, long-term investments have played a vital role for the port. Proactive addition of buffer capacity has allowed Savannah to deal with unexpected spikes in demand in an efficient manner. This in turn has helped ensure customer satisfaction and confidence in the port’s management. In this respect, being owned by the state of Georgia has allowed the port to commit to a long-term vision instead of concentrating on short-term gains.

Another way in which the port has been investing in its sustainable future is by switching from diesel-powered to electricity cargo cranes, thereby reducing local emissions and becoming less dependent on oil. This transition is scheduled to be completed within ten years. However, the port is currently not considering financial incentives for handling particularly efficient ships, as a number of ports in the US and Germany have already done. This would help carry the idea of sustainability beyond the port and contribute to a more environmentally friendly global freight shipping.

HAVING grown up going fishing with his father and grandfather in the wetlands surrounding Savannah, Mr. Beckmann has a personal interest in maintaining the port’s pristine natural habitat. Managing the port sustainably will help to keep up the tradition of going fishing with his own children. In this Mr. Beckmann exemplifies a rather common and often underestimated approach to the topic of sustainability and the issues of climate change: drawing from personal experience and individual conviction an incentive to implement and work on sustainable development in a professional context.