Eco-friendly construction supplies for the Port of Hueneme

The Port of Hueneme has chosen new eco-friendly pilings for the harbour deepening project that is currently under way.

Impervious to marine creatures and salt water, the pilings do not require chemical treatment and, therefore, do not harm any of the harbour’s marine life. The port invested in these new construction materials as an additional ecological protection.

The new eco-friendly pilings will help to support and reinforce the port’s South Terminal as the harbour is dredged from 35 feet to 40 feet (10.6 metres to 12.1 metres) deep over the next few months. The deepening project will allow the port’s existing customers to load their ships with more cargo, thereby increasing efficiency and reducing air emissions. Larger ships will also be able to enter the harbour.

Sand from the harbour deepening has been tested and approved by the California Coastal Commission to be used as near-shore replenishment for Hueneme Beach.

Bedford Technology in Worthington, Minnesota, manufactured the eco-friendly pilings. They are engineered from recycled plastic into a sustainable building material that is built for generations to come. This project alone will divert more than 1.5 million pounds (680,000 kilograms) of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic from landfill.

“Environmental stewardship and sustainable growth are knitted into the very fabric of how the port does business,” Kristin Decas, the port’s CEO and director, says in regard to the decisions made to increase the project’s sustainability. “With the beach replenishment component, the project serves as a significant environmental win for our local community.”