JACKOSNVILLE, Fla. – Congressional and maritime leaders met in Miami on Friday to discuss port safety, security and infrastructure.
With the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore Harbor last week, supply chain disruptions due to the pandemic and, more recently, attacks on ships in the Middle East, it all points to the ways shipping is vital to global trade and security.
Cargo activity at U.S. ports like JAXPORT is crucial for our economy.
At a Joint House Subcommittee hearing on safety and security at U.S. ports, that point was emphasized, with Chairman and Republican Florida Congressman Daniel Webster, who noted cargo activity accounts for 26% of our nation’s GDP.
In the past, the emphasis on protecting these hubs of commerce has focused on physical threats, but now, one of the biggest growing concerns is cyber attacks.
“One of America’s largest ports, the port of Los Angeles, faces approximately 40 million cyber attacks per month,” Webster said.
At JAXPORT, a spokesperson said it has taken proactive cybersecurity measures and has served as a leader in this area, working with stakeholders, both local and global, to address cybersecurity preparedness, which is a priority of the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Jacksonville.
Another major concern, according to congressional leaders, is China’s growing influence on the seas.
“Major port equipment such as terminal cranes are purchased from China and could present serious vulnerabilities to the supply chain,” Webster said.
Webster said nearly 80% of port-to-ship cranes are made by a Chinese state-owned company known as ZPMC and are under the control of the Communist party which could cause American-bound cranes to malfunction or facilitate cyber espionage at U.S. ports.
News4JAX wanted to know if any of the cranes here at JAXPORT are from that Chinese state-owned company.
It wasn’t hard to figure out.
The port put out a press release in 2016 saying three new cranes here at the Blount Island Marine Terminal were built, delivered and set to be installed by that Chinese state-owned company.
JAXPORT said eight of its 26 cranes were manufactured by ZPMC, but none use Chinese software or hardware.
“All of our cranes are operated by software and hardware made in the United States, Europe or Japan. Firewalls are in place for additional protection. Also, JAXPORT Public Safety and IT departments have implemented additional security protections to keep operations safe,” a spokesperson said.
JAXPORT said two additional container cranes on order are being manufactured in Ireland.