California Air Resources Board

Published on April 18, 2025

Ocean-going vessels (OGV) at berth are a significant source of emissions affecting air quality in California, especially for port-side communities which are often designated as AB 617 or disadvantaged communities. To address these emissions, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) implemented the At Berth Regulation, originally adopted in 2007 and updated in 2020. The 2020 At Berth Regulation requires OGVs to use shore power or a CARB Approved Emission Control Strategy (CAECS) while at berth to reduce emissions. However, some exceptions are allowed. The updated emissions control requirements of the 2020 At Berth Regulation began in 2023 for container, cruise, and refrigerated cargo vessels. In 2025, these requirements took effect for tankers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and for all auto-carriers/roll-on roll-off vessels statewide. Additionally, all vessel, terminal, and CAECS operators in California must report their visit activity to CARB, even if they do not have emissions control requirements. In 2024, our data showed a compliance rate of over 95% indicating the 2020 At Berth Regulation is successful in reducing emissions around our port communities. 

Below is a dashboard illustrating compliance and other metrics of the 2020 At Berth Regulation in 2024. Click on "STATEWIDE" to view state-level data and click on individual port names to access specific port-level data. 

Please note: Compliance data for the Port of Hueneme is not included in the dashboard at this time. A December 2023 storm event caused major damage to the Port’s shore power system. CARB is collaborating with the Port of Hueneme to address compliance until the system is replaced. 

Total Visits: Total number of vessel visits reported to CARB in 2024 visiting California ports for all ocean-going vessel types. 

Regulated Visits: Number of vessel visits reported to CARB in 2024 for regulated ocean-going vessel types: 

• 2024: Container, passenger/cruise, and refrigerated cargo. 

Regulated Visits by Port: Number of vessel visits at each port for regulated ocean-going vessel types. 

Audited Visits: Number of vessel visits from 2024 that have been audited by CARB Enforcement. Not all regulated visits have been audited due to unreported visits or incomplete submissions.

Shore Power Capable Visits: Number of audited vessel visits that connected to shore power for any period of time. 

Visits Using Alternative Control Technology: Number of audited vessel visits that connected to a CAECS for any period of time, regardless of compliance. Please see At Berth Regulation Executive Orders | California Air Resources Board for CARB approved strategies. 

Compliance Pathways: Compliance pathways, as outlined by the 2020 At Berth Regulation, are the methods available to regulated parties to ensure compliance for each visit. Regulated parties may use shore power, a CAECS, or an exception (see Categories of Exceptions Granted for more information) to successfully comply with the requirements of the 2020 At Berth Regulation. The chart illustrates that the vast majority of vessel visits in 2024 used shore power to comply with the 2020 At Berth Regulation. 

Categories of Exceptions Granted: The chart shows all the categories of exceptions that CARB granted to vessel visits in 2024. Please note that "Exceptions" do not always mean visits with no emission control. Many excepted visits, such as "Commissioning" or hourly use of the "Remediation Fund", still reduce a portion of vessel emissions at berth (2020 At Berth Regulations Section 93130.4. Exceptions).  

• Remediation Fund: see Total Remediation Fund Payment.

• Research: A vessel visit may be granted a research exception if it participates in research in accordance with a CARB approved test plan.

• Safety/Emergency: An event due to severe weather conditions, a utility event, or other extraordinary reasons beyond the operator’s control.

• VIEs & TIEs: Vessel Incident Events (VIE) and Terminal Incident Events (TIE) are designed to provide regulated vessel fleets and terminal operators with a limited number of visits in which emissions are not reduced during a regulated vessel visit. The number of VIEs and TIEs granted is based on the size of a regulated party's fleet or operation in the year prior (5% and 15% respectively for 2024). 

• Commissioning: Commissioning occurs when a shore power system on a vessel is tested for the first time or after it has been repaired to ensure it is working properly and is compatible with the shore-side system. 

• Low Activity Terminal: Generally, a low activity terminal is a terminal which receives fewer than 20 visits a year of one vessel type. The vessels that visit a Low Activity Terminal do not have emissions control requirements. 

Compliance Rate: The compliance rate for each port indicates the proportion of compliant visits out of the total audited visits at that port. Visits that are not deemed “compliant” are either pending further investigation or have been issued a violation. The 'STATEWIDE' compliance rate is the median compliance rate across all ports.  

Total Remediation Fund Payment: The "Remediation fund" refers to an account set up by a fund administrator approved by CARB under a Memorandum of Understanding. Current fund administrators include Air Districts and CAPCOA. Regulated entities can contribute to this fund to offset their uncontrolled emissions during a vessel visit under specific conditions. This compliance option is available by request, and CARB evaluates each request on a case-by-case basis. Collected funds support projects that lower emissions in affected port communities. For more information, please visit Remediation Fund | California Air Resources Board 

Remediation Fund Received by Air District: The amount of remediation fund payments received by each Air District to date. For a list of fund administrators and their contact information, please visit Remediation Fund | California Air Resources Board. 

Engine Fuel Type: The data reflects the proportion of vessel visits that utilize different types of marine fuels for their engines at berth in California. The primary fuels employed are Marine Gas Oil (MGO), Marine Diesel Oil (MDO), and Liquid Natural Gas (LNG). Please note that this data is based solely on vessel reports and is not verified by CARB.

Terminal: A facility consisting of adjacent wharves, piers, docks, other berthing locations and storage, which are used primarily for loading and unloading of passengers, cargo or material from vessels or for the temporary storage of this cargo or material on-site.