California’s “At Berth” Regulation for Ports

In August 2020, the California Air Resources Board approved a new regulation designed to reduce pollution from ocean-going vessels while docked at California’s busiest ports. The rule builds on CARB’s At-Berth Regulation adopted in 2007.

The rule requires that every vessel coming into a regulated California port either use shore power (e.g., plug in to the local electrical grid) or a CARB-approved control technology to reduce harmful emissions. These include diesel particulate matter, fine particulate matter (PM2.5) oxides of nitrogen (NOx, a precursor to smog), reactive organic gases (ROG, another precursor to smog), greenhouse gases, and oxides of sulfur (SOx).

The existing regulation stays in force through 2022; the updated regulation starts in 2023 when container, reefer and cruise vessels – already included under the existing rule – will transition to the new regulation.