FEDERAL JUDGE HALTS WORK ON CHINA SHIPPING’S LOS ANGELES TERMINAL

FEDERAL JUDGE HALTS WORK ON CHINA SHIPPING’S LOS ANGELES TERMINAL    U.S. Federal Judge Margaret M. Morrow in Los Angeles has issued a temporary restraining order stopping construction of China Shipping Holding Co.’s terminal at the Port of Los Angeles.
   Morrow said earlier this week that she needed more time to study a request for a preliminary injunction against the terminal filed by civic and environmental organizations.
   That injunction wants all work halted at the terminal until an environmental study can assess the effect of the 174-acre container facility on nearby homes in San Pedro.
   The court acted as workmen poured 100 feet of concrete in an apparent rush to finish the terminal, which is about 60 percent completed.
   A delay in finishing China Shipping’s facility could cost the Port of Los Angeles more than $1 million a month. The terminal, comprising two wharves and 10 cranes, is expected to handle 260 ships and 1.5-million TEUs annually.
   A spokesman for the Port of Los Angeles would not comment 'about ongoing litigation.”