Global Container Terminals (GCT) was designated the Green Business of the Year this past December by the Delta Chamber of Commerce on Canada’s West Coast. The award reflects the company’s daily efforts to continue to improve the sustainability of its operations by handling more business within its existing footprint, by improving its energy efficiency, and by decreasing overall emissions. The company’s sustainability initiatives have resulted in further recognition by Clean50’s Top 15 Projects for GCT Canada and the Outstanding Project Award by the Intelligent Transportation Society of New Jersey for GCT USA.
GCT Canada is certified in the greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction program run by Climate Smart, a Green Marine partner. Between 2014 and last year, GCT Canada achieved a 5.9% emissions reduction per 1,000 TEUs, despite volumes increasing by 6.1% during the same period. GCT USA has worked closely with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in testing hybrid auto stop-start technology with initial results at GCT New York showing good promise: two demonstration tractor units equipped with Effenco technology are projected to remove 6.0 tonnes of GHG this year. GCT Canada is partnering with the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority to test out the same technology at GCT Vanterm.
After pioneering a truck appointment system at the Port of Vancouver to reduce idling and dwelling times in 2004, GCT is leading the way again by being the first to introduce the program at GCT Bayonne within the New York harbour this past year. As a result, the GCT’s combined terminals prevented 30,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions – the equivalent of removing 6,400 cars off the road – in 2017 alone.