The 'Green Cowboy'.(S. David Freeman)

BYLINE: BY STEPHANIE NALL

S. David Freeman is the former head of the Tennessee Valley Authority. He's worked at the Environmental Protection Agency, been the top guy at public utilities in Sacramento and Los Angeles and worked for energy companies. Right now, he's president of the Los Angeles Harbor Commission. Of all the titles listed on his resume, he prefers to be known as the Green Cowboy.

Despite decades living elsewhere, he's never lost his Texas twang, and the 81-year-old is rarely seen without his cowboy hat. But Freeman sees the "Green" as the essential part of his nickname and his duties.

After being named to the port post by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaragoisa, Freeman worked with counterparts across the bridge at the Port of Long Beach to develop a joint Clean Air Action Plan to reduce polluting emissions that are generated by port activities. The far-ranging plan will cost billions to adopt and would affect operations by ports, terminals, ocean carriers, railroads and trucking companies.

Freeman is the most vocal advocate of the more expensive parts of the plan and is pushing for even more expensive technology such as magnetic levitation trains to be included. But he wants the trade and transportation communities to …