The Port of Los Angeles has released its 2025 Inventory of Air Emissions, recording its lowest emissions per container on record and continuing a two-decade trend of significant reductions alongside growing cargo volumes.
In 2025, the port handled nearly 10.2 million TEUs while achieving year-on-year declines across all major pollutants: diesel particulate matter fell 2%, nitrogen oxides declined 4%, sulfur oxides dropped 5% and greenhouse gases decreased 3% compared to 2024.
The NOx reduction marked the lowest annual total for that pollutant since the port began tracking emissions in 2005.
Since 2005, the port has reduced DPM by 90 percent, NOx by 72 percent, SOx by 98 percent and GHGs by 16%, while container volumes have increased 37%. Since the 2017 update to the Clean Air Action Plan, DPM, NOx, SOx and GHGs are down 15 percent, 38 percent, 28% and 9% respectively.
Progress across individual source categories in 2025 was broad-based. Truck DPM and NOx fell 16 percent and 25 percent in a single year, with DPM, NOx and SOx down 98%, 94% and 97% since 2005.
Electric cargo-handling units increased 20 percent in the year, with zero-emission equipment now comprising 14 percent of all cargo-handling equipment and ten times as many hybrid units as in 2017, delivering total DPM, NOx and SOx reductions of 83 percent, 87 percent and 84 percent since 2005.
Harbor craft emissions fell further as 55 percent of tugs, barges, ferries and workboats now meet Tier 3 and Tier 4 emissions standards, up from zero percent in 2005.
Ships benefited from cleaner fuels, increased shore power use and a 34 percent reduction in vessel arrivals since 2005. Rail emissions declined modestly, with DPM, NOx and SOx down 45% , 52% and 99% since 2005 through cleaner fuels and newer locomotives.
Harbor Commission President Beatrice Hsu described the results as a powerful reminder of progress made over 20 years of the Clean Air Action Plan while reaffirming commitment to the zero-emissions goal.
Executive Director Gene Seroka credited years of investment, innovation and cross-industry collaboration for demonstrating that high cargo volumes and continued emission reductions can be achieved simultaneously.
