“Greening the Supply Chain” Conference focuses on private-public partnership

Patrick Burnson, Executive Editor -- Logistics Management, 6/5/2008 9:52:00 AM

SAN FRANCISCO—While The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Smartway Transport Partnership has been around for more than four years, government authorities are hoping it will be more widely embraced now that the industry has reached a tipping point on energy consumption.

The EPA will be among several public agencies making a pitch at the inaugural “Greening the Supply Chain” conference, to be held June 9-10 at the Sacramento Convention Center.

 “This will be a good forum for such an announcement, said Joel Anderson, president and CEO of the International Warehouse Logistics Warehouse Association (ILWA), one of the principal sponsors. “The whole idea behind such a conference is to drive public and private dialogue on the issues.  

 The Warehouse Educational Research Council (WERC) and the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) are the two other shipper groups organizing the event.

 Cheryl Bynum of the EPA’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality will present opening comments at the inaugural conference, then present material on The Smartway Transport Partnership. By 2012, the Smartway Transport Partnership aims to reduce between 33-to-66 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and up to 200,000 tons of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions per year. At the same time, the initiative will result in fuel savings of up to 150 million barrels of oil annually. There are three primary components of the program: creating partnerships, reducing all unnecessary engine idling, and increasing the efficiency and use of rail and intermodal operations.

 According to Anderson, shippers are eager to learn more about what state and federal agencies will be mandating soon, so that “they can beat them to the punch.”

 “We want to anticipate any new regulations or restrictions before they are handed down,” he said. “That way, transportation providers can keep the supply chain clean and efficient without major disruptions.”