HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Port Commission of the Port of Houston Authority met in its regular session on Tuesday, July 25. “Port Houston has already handled nearly 20 million tons of cargo this year, reflecting an increase of 13 percent from the same period last year,” said Executive Director Roger Guenther. His report to the commission also included an account of other good news for Port Houston’s second quarter. Container volumes increased by 14 percent compared to the same period last year and more than 1.7 million tons of steel crossed Port Houston wharves, reflecting a year-to-date increase of nearly 50 percent.
Among actions taken, the commission authorized an agreement with NOAA, the U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to support its system that gives users of the Houston Ship Channel information on tides, water levels, and meteorological conditions: https://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/ports/index.html?port=hg
Also, during the meeting Port Commission Chairman Janiece Longoria acknowledged the tenth anniversary of the Clean and Green Program. Port Houston and its partners, including Shell Oil Company and several public agencies, began the initiative in 2007, and it continues to leverage the efforts of community service workers and the Buffalo Bayou Partnership to remove trash and debris from local waterways, including the Port of Houston Turning Basin. Since its inception, more than 20,000 cubic yards of these materials have been collected – trash and debris equating to more than 800 garbage truckloads, or covering a football field piled more than 12 feet high - and as a result did not collect in Galveston Bay.
Chairman Longoria also welcomed remarks from a representative of the landscape architecture firm SWA Group, who thanked the commission for supporting the firm’s summer student program, and stated that the students project, “Port Houston: Moving Landscape,” will present their vision for Port Houston.
The Port Commission is scheduled to next meet on Tuesday, September 26 at 9:00 a.m. There is no meeting scheduled for the month of August.
About Port Houston
For more than 100 years, the port has owned and operated the public wharves and terminals of the Port of Houston – the nation’s largest port for foreign waterborne tonnage and an essential economic engine for the Houston region, the state of Texas, and the nation. It supports the creation of nearly 1.175 million jobs in Texas and 2.7 million jobs nationwide, and economic activity totaling almost $265 billion in Texas – 16 percent of Texas’ total gross domestic product – and more than $617 billion in economic impact across the nation. For more information, visit Port Houston’s website at: www.porthouston.com.