The pressure continues to cut emissions from ships, trucks, trains and cargo handling equipment that moves marine cargo in the Port of Seattle. In the last five years, the city of Seattle has seen a reduction in emissions and the hope is that the rate of pollution continues to decrease. According to KING 5 News, a new Energy and Sustainability commission was established to keep pushing the Port of Seattle forward on its proposed goal of becoming the most green port in the world. Designs for the new Terminal 5, where container opperations have ceased, feature much more electrical equipment, possibly even automated equipment. Emissions would be reduced by plugging ships into shore power, which cuts the need to run generators or engines while in port. Fred Felleman, one of the port’s newest commissioners, told KING 5, “We have a port that’s right inside a major growing city, so we’ve taken the responsibility that we’re not just pursing additional cargo, but we want to reduce the impacts on our surrounding community.”

A new report shows that Seattle ranks sixth worst in the nation for traffic congestion. Seattle Pi reported on Tuesday that Kirkland-based data research group INRIX released its latest Traffic Scorecard and last year, Seattleites spent an average of 66 hours sitting in traffic. According to the report, the worst commute in the Seattle, Tacoma and Bellevue region, is on Interstate 5 from 130th Street to Union Street in downtown Seattle. During the peak evening commute, it takes an average of 21 minutes to drive the the 8.65-mile road. The report concluded that congestion across the U.S. has gotten worse largely due to strong economies, population growth, higher employment rates and declining gas prices. “For most cities, applying big data to create intelligent transportation systems will be key to solving urban mobility problems,” the report says in its introduction. “INRIX’s data and analytics on traffic, parking and population movement can help city planners and engineers make data-based decisions to prioritize spending where it will create the biggest impact now and for the future.” At least we’re not in Los Angeles, where the report found that drivers sat in traffic for 81 hours for the year.

Seattle considers another downtown building proposal that would shape Seattle’s skyline. Local firm, Urban Visions, is proposing a project called “The Launch Pad” at the 1516 Second Avenue building that formerly housed Amazon. According to KING 5 News, Urban Visions proposes a 240-foot-tall building that would look different than anything downtown, with two stories of retail stores at the bottom and office space and residential units up top. The roof above levels two and three would provide outdoor open space for building tenants and office employees. The design also includes a 70-foot void in the building, lifting the building up. Raising the building would help to incorporate more natural lighting into the design.

Dozens of stolen items were recovered after a Seattle woman used an app to track and locate her iPad. After Victoria Simons discovered that $10,000 worth of merchandise and her iPad had been stolen from her Green Lake boutique, she used an app to track her missing iPad and it eventually led her to an address in Bothell. According to KOMO News, Sheriff’s Deputy Will Ter-Veen, who went to the Bothell address, found the iPad in a BMW where Ter-Veen also saw suitcases, Nordstrom bags, expensive brands of alcohol and other items. Deputy Ter-Veen had the car towed and also got a search warrent. When the car was searched, dozens of items that were stolen during other burglaries reported in Seattle were found. So far, Ter-Veen’s investigation has connected to at least five other Seattle burglary crimes. Ter-Veen said the BMW that was towed from the Bothell home was stolen from a Seattle car repair shop, and he also recovered other stolen license plates. Any stolen items that have not been claimed will be given over to Seattle Police. Although no arrests have been made, Ter-Veen recognized the man living at the Bothell address from prior cases and the case is still ongoing.