As federal air-cargo security regulations tighten, the government is looking to the private sector to keep cargo flowing without delay. And Los Angeles is leading the way.

Mercury Air Cargo Inc., an L.A. air services company, has been chosen by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration to create the nation’s first independent cargo screening facility, or ICSF, at Los Angeles International Airport.

Mercury, which transfers and processes air cargo between jets and motor carriers, has been certified to screen cargo at its 200,000-square-foot facility on Avion Drive within the airport. The company is charging freight forwarders between 10 cents to 15 cents per kilo for the screening, which is done using X-rays and other methods.

The TSA sought to establish the private facility as a result of the 9/11 Commission Recommendations Act of 2007, which currently requires 50 percent of cargo on passenger aircraft to be screened at a level comparable with passengers’ checked baggage. By August 2010, 100 percent of all cargo will have to be similarly screened.

Freight forwarders can simply allow the airlines to screen their cargo, but that could mean major delays. Freight forwarders also could do their own screening, but that requires going through an arduous certification process. As a result, Mercury expects its new facility will be in high demand.

“We see a real opportunity to help facilitate cargo screening and especially help out the small- and medium-sized forwarders, who may not be able to afford the costs associated with doing their own in-house screening and/or have the desire to keep up with all of the TSA requirements,” said Joseph A. Czyzyk, chief executive of Mercury Air Group Inc., the parent company of Mercury Air Cargo, said in a statement.

Mercury was able to land the certification after participating in the TSA’s Certified Cargo Screening Program, a voluntary program that allows certified manufacturers, exporters and forwarders to screen air cargo before it is shipped.

LAX handles 1.8 million tons of arriving and departing freight and mail, nearly 75 percent of the air cargo volume in the Southern California region, according to airport spokeswoman Nancy Suey Castles.

Hub Opens

The Port of Long Beach is set Monday to unveil its Command and Control Center, a $21 million facility that will serve as a communications and security hub.

The three-story structure will house the port detail of the Long Beach Police Department, an office for the Port of Los Angeles police and accommodate the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and Marine Exchange in an emergency.

It’s the first time that all agencies will have a physical headquarters to operate in during an emergency, part of the post-Sept. 11 efforts to secure the ports, said Port of Long Beach spokesman John Pope.

The center was funded primarily by the Port of Long Beach, with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to contribute $8.1 million toward the cost.

A shutdown of the port complex in the case of an attack or disaster would cost the economy more than $1 billion a day, officials estimated.

Tested and Ready

The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are readying to start collecting fees from truckers next week after months of delays over their Clean Trucks Program.

Officials said they have tested out an electronic system they will use to levy the fees, and in the next few days will bombard truckers, motor carriers and cargo owners with reminders about the fee via mail, e-mail and even flashing highway signs.

“We have had several starts and stops along the way,” said Bruce Wargo, president of PortCheck, the non-profit agency setup to collect the fee. “But we’ve been using that time to test out the gate and computer systems, and doing educational outreach to trade groups and the port community.”

The fee, which is assessed at $35 per 20-foot cargo container unit, is part of the ports’ joint Clean Trucks Program, aimed at reducing port pollution 80 percent by 2012.

More than $1.6 billion over the next five years could be generated by the fee, which would help the ports fund incentive programs for motor carriers to buy the cleanest trucks.

Cargo owners are responsible for the fee, and must pay it by credit card or electronic funds transfer before a container can enter or leave a terminal. Cargo owners that have their goods carried on privately funded clean trucks will be exempt.

A workshop will be held by the ports for the cargo owners this week to review fee collection procedures, said Port of Los Angeles spokesman Arley Baker.

Staff reporter Francisco Vara-Orta can be reached at (323) 549-5225, ext. 241, or at [email protected]