IN THIS ISSUE:
A Note to TQ Readers............2
Q&A
with Port of
L.A.
Executive Director
Geraldine Knatz.....................3
Eno Chairman
Addresses
Urban Freight Conference.......4
Logistics
Education Forum
Set for June...........................4
Eno News.............................5
Goods Movement Readings....7
TQ Flasback.........................7
FOR GOODS MOVEMENT AND THE ENVIRONMENT
With the drumbeat of steadily growing numbers of U.S. imports and exports, limited port capacity and congested highways, and more and more neighborhoods being affected by transport-generated pollution, the Eno Foundation in late March concluded a series of Eno-organized symposiums focused on efficient goods movement and the environment.
The series, held in Washington, D.C. and supported by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, brought together selected goods movement, transportation, and environmental leaders. The six symposiums, each of which featured a topic expert presenter followed by a discussion session, were designed to broaden the participants' awareness of strategies and technologies that can improve the flow of goods within the United States while mitigating environmental impacts.
The individual presenters
frequently demonstrated that the interests of the goods movement industry
and the environmental community are not mutually exclusive, but 
they
collectively drove home another important point: There is no shortage
of challenges, and possible opportunities, for both sides.
Presenter and outgoing Norfolk Southern Chairman David Goode argued there is an enormous amount of untapped potential in the nation's freight rail system that could be unleashed to transport goods more efficiently while simultaneously improving air quality
According to Goode, rail can move one ton of goods four times farther than trucks-using the same amount of fuel. In addition to improving overall fuel consumption, rail's ability to lessen the number of trucks on the nation's roadways would cut harmful diesel and nitrous oxide emissions and alleviate the congestion that leads to the most concentrated releases of these air pollutants.
But strong public-private partnerships are crucial to realizing freight rail's full potential. Rail companies are investing more in researching new technologies for more efficient and greener operations. This research, Goode claimed, could be further encouraged by tax credits or other government financial support.
Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph Boardman expressed similar support in his presentation for the positive role public-private partnerships can play in goods movement investments. He spoke of his work as the state of New York's transportation commissioner, where he was instrumental in supporting initiatives such as the CREATE program, through which public agencies and private companies worked together to invest in rail infrastructure improvements that not only made freight rail more efficient, but improved air quality and reduced noise pollution.
continued
on page 2