West Coast Recycling Group LLC’s Proposed

Metal Recycling Facility for the

Port of West Sacramento

Project Overview

West Coast Recycling Group, LLC (WCRG) is proposing to construct and operate a new metal recycling facility at the Port of West Sacramento. This state-of-the-art facility is one of the latest projects in the port’s push toward a new, innovative “green” business and operations model. The new facility represents a significant private investment of more than $25 million in the community that will bring more jobs to the West Sacramento region.

Background
The metal recycling industry is an $86 billion global industry that in the United States employs about 85,000 people and processes 150 million tons of recyclable material each year, including 85 million tons of iron and steel. For every ton of steel recycled, we conserve more than 4,000 pounds of raw materials. Steel is the only material that has a guaranteed recycled content, because old steel is used as a raw material to make new steel. According to the U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency, recycled iron and steel save the nation 74 percent of the energy that would have been needed to make new steel. That’s enough energy to electrically power about one fifth of U.S. households, about 20 million homes, for one year. And for every pound of steel recycled, we save enough energy to light a 60 watt bulb for 26 hours. Only two metal shredding facilities of this type serve the 20 million people of Northern California, of which, about 2 million people are in the greater Sacramento area. In comparison, other states with similar populations have anywhere from eight to 20 facilities serving populations of 3 million to 24 million, respectively.

Our Proposed Project
The proposed WCRG facility and associated equipment will be located at 3125 Industrial Boulevard at the Port of West Sacramento. This facility will be state-of-the-art, with modern emission controls, capture and reuse of rainwater, and efficient integration with port and city utility systems. The layout and planned construction will facilitate new, internal port roads and relocate the port entrance to enhance overall safety and traffic flow. Operations at the facility will include sorting and shredding of metal that is derived from retired automobiles, structural steel from demolition sites, appliances and other obsolete steel/metals. Then the sorted/shredded material is separated and processed to extract reusable material. The nonmetallic material is processed and reused as sanitary day cover in landfills.

Economic Benefits
The new metal recycling facility will provide an immediate and significant economic boost to the greater Sacramento region. The WCRG project will invest more than $25 million in capital construction using local skilled union trade workers and provide more than 60 long-term administrative, operating and maintenance jobs for local residents.

As a West Sacramento headquartered business, WCRG will contribute substantially to the local community including direct and indirect taxes, and provide substantial direct revenue to the Port and City of West Sacramento.

The facility will help revitalize the port by using existing facilities that have been idle or underused for years. This new project also will position West Sacramento as a leader in the export of scrap metal and recycled materials.

Environmental Benefits
By having a metal recycling facility in West Sacramento, we can encourage improved metal recycling in the greater Sacramento area, while reducing the number of trucks traveling on highways from Sacramento to the Bay Area, which will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Increasing the amount of metal that is recycled means less material in landfills, and greater ease of recycling will help reduce dumping and debris in the region. The vehicles to be shredded on site will be “clean,” as vehicle fluids, tires, batteries, and reusable parts will be removed prior to reaching the facility to enhance compliance with environmental requirements. Emission controls at the facility will meet all applicable Yolo Solano Air Quality Management District rules and regulations. Emissions from the shredder will be captured and significantly reduced by an air pollution control system.

The shredding plant will use state-of-the-art machinery, which has been tested at a similar facility in Columbus, Nebraska, and shown to have no discernible noise outside the port fence line (traffic noise on Industrial Boulevard is greater).