Port of Quincy, Wash. looks for dry agricultural cargo

The inland intermodal terminal says products such as grains, hay and legumes could be loaded in Central Washington and shipped to Seattle and Tacoma by rail.    The Port of Quincy Intermodal Terminal, located in central Washington on the BNSF Stevens Pass Line, said that it is holding discussions with shippers and other stakeholders about using its facility as a westbound inland intermodal port where containers could be loaded with dry agricultural products such as wheat, corn, beans, hay, legumes, and moved by rail to the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma to be loaded onto oceangoing containerships.
   Curt Morris, chairman of the Port of Quincy, said, “We appreciate the discussion and interest in the Port of Quincy Intermodal Terminal as an inland rail port in which ocean containers would be received and hauled by train to Seattle and Tacoma marine ports, and we look forward to working with various shippers, decision makers and other interested parties as these discussions continue.”
   The port noted that in February, the Northwest Seaport Alliance, an alliance between the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma, gave a presentation to shippers and stakeholders in central Washington on Inland Port Impact on Growing the Agriculture Industry which said an inland port could:
     • Reduce congestion on major roadways and mountain passes;
     • Move containers with more speed and reliability while lowering the carbon footprint of exports;
     • Spot containers closer to shippers, with round the clock availability to pick-up or drop-off containers in a secured yard;
     • Attract new investments in warehouses and other industries supporting agriculture;
     • And reduce turn times so exporters would be able to ship more product overseas by reducing marine terminal congestion.
   The Port of Quincy said it has previously been used for moving refrigerated products both to the Seattle and Tacoma as well as destinations in the Midwest and East Coast.
   The port said its intermodal terminal includes over 8,000 feet of rail storage/siding tracks, a container maintenance and cleaning facility, nearly 1 million square feet of warehousing in close proximity to provide shippers with distribution, cross-dock and storage capacity, a container reach stacker, a top pick container loader, and a shuttle wagon/yard goat (a small locomotive) to move and organize stacked containers within the terminal. It says the intermodal terminal  resides on 16 acres of land with another 20+ acres available for expansion on adjacent port-owned property.