Goods Movement in California

Forty percent of all U.S. imports arrive in the United States through California’s marine ports. Every day, ships loaded with containers or foreign-made automobiles arrive at one of the state's major ports. Cargo planes arrive with high-end materials from all over the world. At marine ports and airports, from the Port of Oakland to LAX, the cargo is then loaded on to trucks and trains. It is then shipped to communities across California and the United States. The sum of these processes is known as goods movement.

Because of changes in trade regulations and increasing imports of low cost goods from Asia, the amount of goods transported through California is projected to nearly quadruple from 11 million container units in 2000 to 42 million in 2020. The Schwarzenegger Administration has already created a Cabinet Level Working Group to develop policies that will support the expansion of goods movement.

Total Combined Truck Flows To/From California, 1998
Source: U.S. Department of Transportation

The entire goods movement industry runs on diesel fuel: from the arrival of containers and automobiles on diesel ships, to the cranes, trucks, and trains that transport containers across California. The exhaust from diesel fuel is the number one toxic air contaminant in California, contributing to 70% of all airborne cancer risk. Diesel soot not only causes cancer, but exacerbates asthma and is linked to heart disease and premature death.

While most Californians are exposed to air pollution from goods movement, its greatest impacts are on communities living in close proximities to marine ports, airports, highways, train depots, and distribution centers. Goods movement impacts millions of California residents living in these communities. Many of these communities are low income and people of color, often lack adequate health care, and have the least political power needed to address their environmental health concerns. With the expected growth in trade, the already severe health and quality of life impacts on communities along goods movement corridors is projected to worsen.

For information on the Institute's research on goods movement, including analysis of the problems and proposed solutions, see the list Pacific Institute reports on goods movement and its neighborhood impacts (top right).