Stax Engineering on a mission to reduce air pollution  in California’s ports

New IBU signatory deploys new technology to capture CO2 and other harmful vessel emissions 

Air pollution in and around our ports impacts the health not only of port workers but also the surrounding community. The Southern California Region of the Inlandboatmen’s Union of the Pacific, the marine division of the ILWU, recently signed an agreement with Stax Engineering. This company provides emissions reduction services for terminal operators, container ships, auto carriers, and tankers in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

“What we do is capture and control,” explained Stax Operations Manager John Holmes. “It’s one of the two options to comply with the at-berth regulations. One is cold ironing, which is plugging into the electrical grid, and the other is capture and control. One way or the other, you have to reduce your footprint if you’re a ship coming into the port. Capture and control is an option that doesn’t require the ship to do anything. They don’t have to do any engineering modifications or retrofitting. Some companies might like that option because it doesn’t require a capital investment in the ship.”

The company utilized a mobile, barge-based emission collection system that removes nearly 100% of particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur oxides, while also capturing carbon dioxide, the leading cause of global warming. The barge’s system utilizes a vacuum system that attaches to a ship’s smokestack via a boom that collects emissions which are then processed through a catalytic-converter-like treatment system utilizing new patented technology developed by company founder and president Bob Sharp. One Stax unit connected to a ship at berth is equal to removing approximately 27,000 cars from the road.

“When a ship comes in, we pull alongside and crane up the boom, based on a concrete pumping boom, but instead of pumping concrete up, it sucks emissions down,” Holmes explained. “The emissions go through a multi-part system and when it comes out the other end, it removes all particulates to meet the emissions requirements. There’s a lot of elegant engineering but in its simplest form.”

Stax currently has one barge, employing three IBU mariners in operation in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach with a second one slated to come online soon and more planned to service ports in California that could expand work opportunities for IBU members as the new emissions standards come into effect.

The California Air Resources Board At-Berth Regulation first adopted carbon regulations in 2007 that greatly reduced emissions in the ports.  New regulations started in 2023 requiring container, reefer, and cruise vessels coming into regulated California ports to either use shore power or approved capture and control technology to reduce harmful emissions. Auto carriers will need to comply starting in 2025. Tankers docking at the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach must also comply by 2025, while tankers in Northern California have until 2027.

Holmes said Stax plans to expand its operations to meet the increased demand that the new regulations bring.  “The intention is to build barges to capture business throughout the state. There are plans for the company to build about 25 barges by 2027,” said Holmes.

Holmes has had a relationship with the ILWU since 2000. He is a 27-year veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard and served as the Captain of the Port for the U.S. Coast Guard for the Los Angeles-Long Beach sector.

“I was here during the 9-11 stuff, and we had a good relationship with the ILWU. In my mind, they were the tip of the spear. If something was going to happen from a security perspective, they would be the first to see it,” Holmes said. “I’ve known a bunch of the people in the ILWU for a long time. When we were putting the barge together and we had identified our needs for personnel, I immediately thought that I wanted to approach the ILWU, and they put me in touch with the IBU,” Holmes said.

Miguel Alba, a six-year member of the IBU has been working for Stax for about two years as a deckhand.

”As deckhands, we’ve been able to help out the operators with everything that has to do with the maritime industry, since we have the skill levels of tying up the barge and knowing what the tugboats that move us need,” Alba said. “Over my career, I’ve done hundreds of jobs. We help put the barge in the best position to connect our hose, and we have the familiarity of talking to ships’ crews to get the job done.”

Alba said he enjoys working for the company because they treat the workforce with respect. “A second thing I like is what they’re doing is making an impact on global warming and the green future. We are making a difference by at least trying to do something that’s going to have a lasting impact for generations and, making the earth a little more green.”