Dirtier ports will hurt jobs, US maritime revival: AAPA

The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) is urging the Senate to preserve funding for anti-pollution programs it says bolster U.S. manufacturing and maritime strength. In a letter Tuesday to Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Committee on Environment and Public Works Chair Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., the trade group emphasized the importance of preserving vital Environmental Protection Agency grant programs that it said support American ports and manufacturing. Currently, two critical EPA initiatives — the Clean Ports Program and the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) grant programs — face elimination under the House of Representatives' version of President…