Green Marine, an environmental certification program for the North American marine industry, elected Port of New Orleans Chief Operating Officer Brandy Christian to its Board of Directors during its annual conference in May 2016. The appointment of Christian denotes the Port’s continued commitment to environmental sustainability.
“Brandy Christian’s nomination shows a high level of commitment to sustainability from the Port of New Orleans,” said Green Marine Executive Director David Bolduc. “We are pleased to have an administrator with her level of expertise sitting on our board. We hope that her involvement with our organization is a sign of increased commitment from the Gulf of Mexico maritime industry.”
The Port earned its first environmental certification with Green Marine in May 2015 and was the 8th U.S. port to voluntarily join the initiative aimed at reducing the environmental impact of the maritime industry. In order to receive Green Marine certification, participants must benchmark their annual environmental performance through the program’s comprehensive self-evaluation guides, have their results verified by an accredited external verifier and agree to publication of their individual results.
Green Marine is not the only organization recognizing the Port of New Orleans’ environmental leadership. The Port was awarded a $727,000 Clean Diesel grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) this past spring. This grant will allow the Port to work with truck owners to upgrade their older vehicles to newer, less polluting engine models. The initiative is called the Clean Truck Replacement Incentive Program, or Clean TRIP.
“This is the first Clean Diesel grant for the Port and it will allow us to work with truck owners to upgrade to 2011 or newer truck models,” said Amelia Pellegrin, Port of New Orleans Environmental Services Manager. “This is definitely a win for us and our trucking partners.”
Pellegrin said truck owners will be able to apply for matching funds for their newer vehicles through the Clean TRIP application process starting in the fall of 2016.
Clean Diesel grants are highly competitive awards for projects that achieve significant reductions in diesel emissions, particularly from fleets operating in ports and in areas designated by the EPA as poor air quality areas.
The appointment of Christian to Green Marine’s Board of Directors and the Clean Diesel grant both underscore the value that the Port has placed on environmental sustainability.
“The growth of the Port and maritime industry is exciting; however, we want to do so in an environmentally friendly way,” said Christian. “As a port, we want to be a leader not only within our jurisdictional boundaries, but throughout North America.”
Port of New Orleans Chief Operating Officer Brandy Christian was recently elected to the Green Marine Board of Directors.
