Bipartisan legislation follows significant fog-related trouble at Houston’s port

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) today introduced the Fog Observations and Geographic Forecasting Act (FOG Forecasting Act), bipartisan legislation to improve the National Weather Service’s (NWS) fog forecasting capabilities to enhance safety at America’s ports and help prevent costly shipping delays caused by dense fog.

Upon introduction of the Fog Act, Sen. Cruz said:

“In my hometown of Houston, we’ve seen unexpected severe fog occurrences delay goods coming in and out of Port Houston. The FOG Forecasting Act would keep vessels moving safely and swiftly at U.S. ports, benefiting shippers, exporters, and consumers. I’m glad to partner on legislation with Sen. Padilla to help produce more accurate fog forecasts that will reduce collisions between vessels, ensure American cargo reaches its destinations intact and on time, and save millions in economic costs from port closures.”

Sen. Padilla said:

“Californians along the Pacific Coast have experienced how unpredictably dense and dangerous the marine layer fog can be. Fog can create hazardous conditions, increasing collision risk for ships transporting essential goods to and from California’s high-volume ports. As communities prepare for and respond to increasingly severe weather patterns, strengthening NOAA’s weather forecasting capabilities is an important bipartisan priority to bolster safer transportation at sea and in the air along our coastlines.”

Background:

This past February, widespread fog in Houston caused significant disruption to the city’s port operations, impacting the Houston Ship Channel’s navigation for nearly two weeks and ultimately reducing cargo flows through the port. Studies have shown that poor visibility, often fog-associated, significantly impacts maritime traffic safety, predisposing vessels to collision accidents. Approximately 70% of ship collisions are attributed to foggy conditions, underscoring the critical need for effective monitoring and management of fog in maritime operations. Marine fog is the primary reason for Houston port closures, and each hour the port is closed can have over $100 million in economic costs. Smaller ports such as Freeport, Port Lavaca, and Texas City can also lose millions of dollars for each hour their ports are closed. too.

The FOG Forecasting Act would require the NWS to establish more marine-based observations that measure visibility, temperatures, dewpoints, and water levels, as well as provide cameras needed to enhance the safe navigation of vessels. The bill would also improve high-resolution modeling capabilities to produce more accurate wind, temperature, dewpoint, and visibility forecasts. These new techniques will give users more detailed and visually appealing information on visibility. Better fog forecasts would reduce uncertainty, allowing ports to reopen sooner, get commerce moving, and reduce the economic costs of port closures. 

Read the full text of this legislation HERE.

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