October 7, 2008

LOS ANGELES/LONG BEACH, CA -

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today named Pacific Harbor Line, Inc. one of 27 companies--and the only railroad--to receive EPA’s 2008 Environmental Excellence Award from its SmartWay Transportation Partnership program.
Announced this morning in Denver, Colo. at the annual conference of the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals, winners were selected for leadership in conserving energy and lowering greenhouse emissions from transportation activities.

PHL, a 75-mile West Coast switching carrier, completely renewed its locomotive fleet this year—cutting particulate and nitrogen oxide emissions by 70 and 46 percent, respectively. PHL locomotives now meet or exceed EPA’s stringent “Tier 2 or Tier 3” standards to reduce air pollutants. PHL in September 2005 was the first short line to join EPA’s SmartWay Transport Partnership, which now has more than 1,000 Partners.

In accepting the award, Anacostia & Pacific Company, Inc. CEO Peter Gilbertson said, “We are very pleased to receive this recognition on behalf of PHL and our employees. We have worked hard to improve air quality in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area--not only by upgrading our locomotive fleet--but through daily practices including electric and hybrid vehicles and use of low-sulfur fuel.”

Background on US EPA SmartWay Environmental Excellence Award

SmartWay was introduced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and a select group of fifteen shipping and business leaders in 2004 as an innovative, market-based partnership to reduce fuel use, greenhouse gas emissions, and air pollutants from the freight sector.

Today, more than 1000 businesses and organizations have joined the Partnership, including companies of all sizes, from Fortune 500 companies to family-owned businesses, each working to improve their environmental performance.  Together, through the SmartWay Partnership, these companies, including Pacific Harbor Line, are conserving almost 600 million gallons of diesel fuel per year, saving the trucking industry at least $2.5 billion in annual fuel and maintenance costs, and eliminating an estimated 6.8 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to global warming.

By 2012, the SmartWay program, with full industry participation, estimates nationwide that it will achieve annual fuel savings of 3.3 to 6.6 billion gallons of diesel fuel, eliminating 33 - 66 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions and up to 200,000 tons of nitrogen oxide emissions.

List of 2008 SmartWay Environmental Excellence Award Winners