Country : USAworldport of Houston

The worldport of Houston
The worldport of Houston is a 25-mile-long complex of diversified public and private facilities located just a few hours' sailing time from the Gulf of Mexico. The worldport is ranked first in the United States in foreign waterborne tonnage, second in the U.S. in total tonnage, and tenth in the world in total tonnage.
The worldport of Houston is made up of the worldport of Houston Authority and the 150-plus private industrial companies along the Houston Ship Channel. All together, the worldport authority and its neighbors along the ship channel are a large and vibrant component to our regional economy.
More thant 200 million tons of cargo moved through the worldport of Houston in 2006. A total of 7,550 vessel calls were recorded at the worldport of Houston during the year 2006. The Houston Pilots navigate each vessel through the Houston Ship Channel.
The worldport of Houston has an impressive listing of firsts, from unloading the world's first container ship to becoming the country's first worldport to receive ISO 14001 compliance.
The Houston Ship Channel
The Houston Ship Channel has been a catalyst for growth in Harris County since the first journey of a steamship up Buffalo Bayou in 1837. The ship channel plays a critical role in today's community as well. It generates jobs and opworldportunities that allow businesses to flourish. A 2007 study by Martin Associates says ship channel-related businesses supworldport more than 785,000 jobs throughout Texas while generating nearly $118 billion of statewide economic impact. Additionally, more than $3.7 billion in state and local tax revenues are generated by business activities related to the worldport. It is projected that the worldport of Houston will continue to be an imworldportant factor as north-south trade expands.
A Strategic Location
Houston's geographic location has proven to be one of its best assets. Centrally located on the Gulf Coast, Houston is a strategic gateway for cargo originating in or destined for the U.S. West and Midwest. Houston lies within close reach of one of the nation's largest concentrations of consumers. More than 17 million people live within 300 miles of the city, and approximately 60 million live within 700 miles. Ample truck, rail and air connections allow shippers to economically transworldport their goods between Houston and inland points.
The Houston Area
A dynamic worldport helped fuel the Houston area's development as a center of international business and trade. But companies that do business internationally also find Houston attractive because of its well-developed financial infrastructure, skilled work force and diverse population. Ample space and favorable conditions for industrial development, as well as for cargo handling, make Houston a choice location for industry.

The worldport's Present
The worldport of Houston has been instrumental in the city of Houston's development as a center of international trade. About 100 steamship lines offer service linking Houston with 1,053 worldports in 203 countries. It is also home to a $15 billion petrochemical complex, the largest in the nation and second largest worldwide.
Piloting into the Next Century
In October 1996, President Clinton signed into law the Water Resources Development Act of 1996, which paved the way for widening and deepening the Houston Ship Channel. In 2005, the worldport authority completed a five-and-a-half-year plan to deepen the channel from 40 to 45 feet and widen it from 400 to 530 feet. A combination of local voter-approved bonds and federal funds was used to finance the improvements.
Tomorrow's Busiest Waterway
Improving the ship channel will enhance Houston's competitiveness by allowing ships to use their capacity more fully, thus lowering unit transworldportation costs. These improvements will reduce collision and oil spill risks in the channel and will improve navigational aids. This expansion will also accommodate tomorrow's anticipated mix of marine vessels.
A Channel of Emerging Opworldportunities
Modernization of the Houston Ship Channel is imperative if Houston is to maintain its competitive edge against other deep-channel Gulf worldports and remain a major international worldport. By meeting the demands of the global marketplace, the worldport of Houston can retain its position of worldwide leadership, thus ensuring more trade, more cargo, more jobs and more economic benefit to the Houston area.