Advancing Sustainable Seaports with Envision
7-July-2026
Seaports sit at the center of global trade, facilitating the movement of goods worldwide, yet they face growing and interconnected challenges — from congestion and aging infrastructure to decarbonization pressures and increased exposure to climate risks.
The Envision Sustainable Infrastructure Framework provides a structured, holistic approach to addressing these challenges. Through a comprehensive, life-cycle evaluation of sustainability, resilience, and community outcomes, the framework provides project teams with standardized criteria and a third-party verification process to deliver projects that are more environmentally responsible, economically viable, and socially beneficial.
The future of seaport infrastructure will be defined not only by capacity, but by how effectively it responds to environmental, social, and economic challenges. Across projects in Italy, Canada, and the United States, Envision is enabling transformative outcomes.
Marina Plan Plus — Port of Cervia, Italy (Envision Silver, 2020)
At the Port of Cervia on Italy’s Adriatic coast, the Marina Plan Plus project demonstrates how innovative technology can redefine marine infrastructure. Traditionally, ports rely on dredging to maintain navigability—an approach associated with high environmental impacts and ongoing costs. This project replaces dredging with submerged “ejector” systems that continuously manage sediment while minimizing disruption to marine ecosystems.
By applying Envision principles early in the design process, the team emphasized long-term environmental stewardship and operational efficiency. The project reduces seabed maintenance costs significantly while protecting marine habitats and lowering emissions associated with dredging activities. It also ensures year-round navigability to support economic activity while safeguarding natural systems.
The result is a highly replicable model for ports facing sedimentation challenges, demonstrating how Envision can drive innovation, reduce environmental impacts, and deliver long-term value.
Centerm Expansion Project — Port of Vancouver, Canada (Envision Platinum, 2022)
At the Port of Vancouver, the Centerm Expansion and South Shore Access Project highlights how Envision enables large-scale infrastructure to balance growth with sustainability. The project increased container handling capacity by two-thirds while expanding the terminal footprint by only 15%, demonstrating efficient use of land and resources.
The creation of new employment opportunities, significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, improvements to local mobility, strong project leadership and collaboration, and — particularly — stakeholder engagement — were among the project’s core achievements.
As a result of an extensive community engagement process, the project recognized and prioritized the goals of the surrounding community through meaningful investments. The port authority, in coordination with Centerm container terminal operator DP World, donated $2 million to community initiatives as part of the project in the Port of Vancouver. Half of the funding supported capital improvements to the waterfront park that is adjacent to the harbor, called CRAB Park at Portside. Additional contributions included $250K each to First Nations initiatives and the Strathcona Community Centre Association, $125K for a community-run service center, and $500K to establish the three-year Centerm Community Fund. The fund supported projects proposed by 41 local organizations focused on community enrichment, education and training, and environmental leadership.
This project illustrates how Envision supports integrated decision-making, enabling ports to expand capacity while strengthening environmental performance and community relationships.
In Halifax, the Africville Seasides Marine Container Examination Facility Project demonstrates how Envision can improve operational efficiency while enhancing quality of life. By relocating container inspection activities within the port, the project eliminates hundreds of daily truck trips through downtown, reducing congestion, emissions, and safety risks for local communities.
The Envision framework guided the integration of renewable energy systems, including solar power, and water reuse strategies, while also supporting climate resilience planning. Early adoption of Envision ensured that sustainability goals were embedded in governance, design, and performance tracking.
By aligning operational improvements with environmental and social outcomes, the project underscores how Envision helps ports address complex urban challenges while advancing long-term sustainability.
Terminal Island Wye Rail Project — Port of Long Beach, United States (Envision Verified, 2024)
At the Port of Long Beach, the Terminal Island Wye Rail Project shows how Envision can transform freight movement systems. By expanding on-dock rail capacity, the project shifts cargo transport from trucks to rail—an approach that is significantly more fuel-efficient and reduces emissions. Project models point to a reduction in CO2 emissions by approximately 65%; it is also expected that this project will result in NOx emission reductions 4.2 tpy for the 2035 operational year.
The project improves cargo flow and eliminates key bottlenecks, while reducing locomotive idling and enhancing regional air quality. It also strengthens system resilience through improved rail integration and redundancy. Importantly, the shift toward rail transport enables the staging of up to 12,000-foot-long trains and the potential to offset 2.2 million truck trips between project completion in 2024 and 2025.
The Terminal Island Wye Rail Project demonstrates how Envision encourages solutions that deliver both environmental and economic benefits.
A Framework for the Future of Ports
These projects illustrate the value of Envision across diverse geographies and scales. By fostering collaboration, improving transparency, and setting measurable sustainability goals, Envision enables ports to deliver infrastructure that is resilient, efficient, and aligned with community priorities.
Seaport projects are inherently complex—often combining marine infrastructure, transportation networks, utilities, logistics facilities, ecological systems, and community interfaces within a single program. Rather than evaluating these elements in isolation, Envision provides one comprehensive system to assess sustainability, resilience, and long-term value across the full project lifecycle.
As global trade demands continue to expand, ports face increasing pressure to modernize while reducing environmental impacts and strengthening climate resilience. Envision equips project teams with a structured approach to navigate competing priorities in delivering infrastructure that supports economic vitality, environment stewardship, and benefits for the communities they serve.
ISI continues to see strong growth in the maritime sector, as shown by the expansion of the Envision Maritime Forum as well as new member activity. For example, over the past year, Port of New Orleans (POLA), announced that its Louisiana International Terminal has become the first new container terminal in the country to register with Envision. Read the POLA news release.
