CA: China may pave way for imports (Foreign investors show interest transportation projects)

The Press-Enterprise ^ | January 27, 2006 | PAUL HERRERA

[calcowgirl]

China may pave way for imports
PORTS: Foreign investors show interest in Southern California transportation projects.

In a twist, foreign funds may be arriving to help build the roads and rails of Southern California.

With congestion in Southern California and the Inland Empire threatening to slow the pace of imported goods, transportation officials are looking to draw overseas investment to help pay for improvements to the region's transportation network.

China, in particular, may be a willing source. The fast-growing Asian nation, whose exports through the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles have grown by 20 percent in four of the past five years, has come to rely heavily on Southern California as a U.S. distribution point.

According to data from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, about 40 percent of the imports come from China. The container traffic, projected to double in the next 20 years, is already straining the capacity of freeways and rail.

"Half of the stuff that arrives through the ports goes directly through [the Inland Empire]," said Norm King, director of the new University Transportation Center at Cal State San Bernardino and the recently retired veteran chief of San Bernardino Associated Governments. "It produces no jobs here and the cost of mitigating the effects falls on us."

Sunne Wright McPeak, California secretary of business, transportation and housing said Gov. Schwarzenegger's recent trip to China included talks on investing in California's freeways and rail lines.

"They were very interested that we are serious about improving our infrastructure," McPeak said. "They were very interested in the fact that we were open to having investment partners."

Analysts and transportation industry leaders say China, like many who rely on the region's network to move goods, would be willing to help pay the cost as long as it is assured the money will go to funding improvements dedicated to its business needs.

China, for example, would be more interested in the construction of dedicated truck lanes than widening freeways for all traffic, analysts say.

Steve Harrington, chairman of the Distribution Management Association of Southern California, said his members are concerned that without guarantees, money would be diverted elsewhere.

McPeak said it's too early to speculate what form foreign investment might take. Some groups say they would support user fees -- such as truck-only toll roads -- to pay down debt once roads are built.

However, analysts say China may be willing to make a more direct investment if it helps smooth the road between its manufacturers and U.S. consumers.

Staff Writer Jim Miller contributed to this story.

[NormsRevenge]

So that trade mission to China may have been more than to just a sell China on california products and services, eh?

[calcowgirl]

So that trade mission to China may have been more than to just a sell China on california products and services, eh?

It probably explains why so many venture capitalists, developers, and New York "financiers" were on the trip. Believing that it was really an attempt to increase sales to China by a California rice grower was a bit of a stretch.

I'm guessing this is the start of the "public private partnerships" that have been alluded to in the past few months.

[NormsRevenge]

..this is the start of the "public private partnerships" ..

I guess that explains why Paul weachter, the Gub's "blind trust" nanager, and also member of the UC Board of Regents went on the trip as part of his delegation.

[BenLurkin]

"Google is Destined to Fail in China"

http://www.chinatechnews.com/index.php?action=show&type=news&id=3482

[NormsRevenge]

Paul Wachter,, not weachter :-}

[calcowgirl]

China Trade Mission:

 

KH TO	Regional Director of Greater China	Abbott
Harold Flynn	Executive	Abbott
Claude Burcky	Executive	Abbott
Ray Holdsworth	CEO	AECOM Technology Corporation
Bill Moncovich	CEO	CA Giant, Inc.
TBD		CA Hospital Association
Susan Day	VP, Int'l Marketing	CA Table Grape Commission
Carolyn Beteta	ED	CA Travel & Tourism
Blair Richardson	CEO	CA Tree Fruit Agreement
Janet Lamkin	CEO	California Bankers Association
Allan Zaremberg	CEO	California Chamber of Commerce
Larry Dicke	CFO	California Chamber of Commerce
Susanne Stirling	VP, International Relations	California Chamber of Commerce
George Gomes	VP	California Farm Bureau Federation
Walter McBride	Executive VP & CFO	Capstone Turbine Corporation
Jack Baylis		CH2M Hill
Jack Coffey	VP, California	Chevron Global Gas
Paul Lam	CEO	Chinese Herbal USA, Inc.
Douglas Circle	CEO	Circle Vision, LLC
Michael Gallagher	CEO	City Pass
Helen Huang	Shanghai Rep	Comerica Bank
Claire Bilby	Senior VP	Disneyland Resort
Timothy Draper		Draper Fisher Jurvetson
Dominic Ng	CEO	East West Bank
Peter Chernin	CEO	Fox
Todd Zapolski	Principal	Girard Winery
Warren Hellman	Chairman	Hellman and Friedman
Terry MacRae	CEO	Hornblower Crusies
Leo Young	CEO	InfoTech Essentials, Inc.
April Zhong	Executive VP	InfoTech Essentials, Inc.
John Hayashi	CEO	Irrigation West
Frank Baxter	Chairman	Jefferies Group
Jack Mau	CEO	JNY Inc
Jay Park	Executive	JNY Inc
Mick Neshek	VP	Kikkoman Foods, Inc.
Mark Liberman	CEO	LA Convention & Visitor Bureau
Gene Pentimonti	Executive	Maersk, Inc.
Robert Kledal	Executive	Maersk, Inc.
Paul Watcher		Main Street Advisors
Margaret Wong	CEO	McWong
Lance Hastings	Western Region Director	Miller Brewing
Louie Pellegrini	VP	Mission Trail Waste Systems
Phillip Alvelda	CEO	MobiTV
Al Montna	CEO	Montna Farms
Selwyn Joffee	CEO	Motorcar Parts of America
Ralph Baxter	Managing Partner	Orrick
William Edwards	Executive	Palo Alto Investors
Vera Janushkowsky	VP	Pfizer, Inc.
Jing Wang	Senior VP & Chairman	Qualcomm
Tom McCormick	Senior VP	Rockefeller Group Dev Corp
Charles Thomas	Wine Maker	Rudd Winery
Leslie Rudd	CEO	Rudd Winery
Steve Hammond	CEO	Sacramento Convention & Visitor Bureau
Ed Litrenta	Senior VP, Marketing	Sea World
Mary O'Neil	Representative	Silver Oak Cellars
David Lee	CEO	Spark Technology Corp
Dougall Agan	Prinicpal	Stirling Development
Michael Colacino	ED	Studley
Robert Verloop	VP	Sunkist Growers
Tei Fu Chen	CEO	Sunrider International
Richard Richards	General Counsel	Sunrider International
Nate Garvis	VP, Govt Affairs	Target
Rick Gabrielson	Executive	Target
Bob Stine	CEO	Tejon Ranch
James Thomas	CEO	Thomas Properties Group, Inc.
Mark Golden		Umina
Cameron Kelly Meine	CEO	Union Hide Company
Alan Wayne	VP	United Airlines
Ron Meyer	CEO	Universal Studios
Ann O'Conner	VP	Universal Studios
Reg Gomes	VP- Agriculture	University of California
Henry Yang	Chancellor	University of California, Santa Barbara
Hong Lu	CEO	UTStarcom
Preston Padden	VP, WorldwideGovt Relations	Walt Disney Co
John Allen	CEO	Wilden
Bobby Koch	CEO	Wine Institute
Joe Rollo	International Director	Wine Institute
Paul Wenger	Owner	Wood Colony Nut Company

[ClaireSolt]

And you would have sent whom? some homeless people, perhaps?

[hedgetrimmer]

foreign funds may be arriving to help build the roads and rails of Southern California.

We poor second class American citizens can't even afford to build our own roads. /sarc

[hedgetrimmer]

California Environmental Protection Agency Secretary Alan Lloyd will step down at the end of February.

Lloyd also co-chairs a task force with Sunne Wright McPeak, secretary of Business, Transportation and Housing, evaluating the governor's plan to triple goods movement across the state by 2020. Although environmentalists have been unhappy with the process and leery of possible concessions by state officials to industry, Lloyd said Schwarzenegger was making significant efforts to put more than $1 billion in bond money and permanent state funds into cleaning the air in local communities.

**

How is he planning to do this?

[hedgetrimmer]

FYI 'goods movement'

The issue came to a head in mid-December, when environmentalists on a task force set up to draft the governor's plans for speeding the movement of goods through California balked at certain port and highway expansion projects. They said those projects, which are likely to be included in the governor's proposed public works program, lacked adequate protections against increased air pollution from diesel-powered ships, trucks and trains.

"Southern California has the worst air pollution in the nation, and recent studies repeatedly have linked that pollution with illnesses and premature deaths," said Andrea Hricko, a task force member and associate professor of preventive medicine at the USC Keck School of Medicine. "Yet the main thrust of the Schwarzenegger transportation expansion plan is to build more freeways, larger ports and more rail yards. That is not how we protect public health."

...Sunne Wright McPeak, secretary of the state's Business, Transportation and Housing Agency and co-chair of the task force, defended the governor's approach. She said Schwarzenegger was committed to a 50% reduction in air pollution by 2020.

McPeak said the goods movement plan, to be finished in June, will call for "continuous and simultaneous improvement" in environmental quality and infrastructure.

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-me-environment7jan07,0,7239169.story?coll=la-headlines-politics

[hedgetrimmer]

This appears to be part of the governor's "green freight" effort.
***
The Southern California Leadership Council believes the solution lies is what they call a “green freight” initiative — a self-reinforcing cycle of investment in trade growth and environmental improvement projects. They believe the way forward is to build support for a coordinated effort in which the public and private sectors will each pay only for those projects from which they derive tangible benefits. The state pays only for projects that make communities more livable, such as eliminating delays at rail crossings or reducing or eliminating diesel pollution along freeways. Meanwhile, the private-sector partners would focus investments on adding capacity and efficiency, and paying for any state-mandated environmental mitigation.

[calcowgirl]

This link on "Goods Movement and Ports" has a bunch of information and links to other documents/plans, including the "Draft Emission Reduction Plan for Ports and International Goods Movement, December 1, 2005"

I posted some stuff on this and his "goods movement" plans on this thread:

CA: Arnold’s Broken Bond - Our taxing relationship with the governor
LA Weekly ^ | November 23, 2005 | BILL BRADLEY
Posted on 11/23/2005 1:02:27 PM PST by calcowgirl

See posts 12, 13, and 20.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1527577/posts?page=12#12

[calcowgirl]

Correction/Addition (forgot to post the link)

This link on "Goods Movement and Ports" ...

http://www.arb.ca.gov/gmp/gmp.htm

[SierraWasp]

"eliminating delays at rail crossings"

What? With grade seperations at every crossing??? (Gee... I just guess I have no imagination... right?)

[hedgetrimmer]

Aw jeez. Do we hafta recall this guy too? Is there NO ONE that the parties will run for office that will protect our rights and uphold the Constitution?

[calcowgirl]

Is there NO ONE that the parties will run for office that will protect our rights and uphold the Constitution?

Apparently not. It seems to me that the problem is with the parties. Without voters, the party isn't anything. Educating voters, while trying to take back the party, seem like good objectives.