A’s win in suit over Howard park site
An Alameda County Superior Court judge ruled Wednesday in favor of the Oakland A’s in their lawsuit against the California Department of Toxic Substances Control over alleged pollution at a metal shredding facility in West Oakland.
The ruling requires the facility’s operator, Schnitzer Steel, to comply with state law when transporting hazardous materials throughout Oakland. Schnitzer’s recycling center, at 1101 Embarcadero West, is next to Howard Terminal where the A’s are proposing a new, privately financed ballpark with housing and offices.
“We couldn’t be happier,” said Dave Kaval, the president of the A’s. “Regardless of our ballpark effort ... we feel very strongly that this was an important undertaking. We are thrilled to have success.”
The A’s filed their lawsuit last August alleging that DTSC failed to regulate Schnitzer’s pollution at their West Oakland facility. The pollution includes 200,000 tons of metal residue each year
and contaminates the air, water and soil, according to the complaint.
A spokesperson for Schnitzer said the ruling “is inconsistent with sound science and with the statute under which the DTSC regulates this material” and the lawsuit filed by the A’s is an “attack” and an effort “to dismantle the Port of Oakland to make room for their luxury condominium, office towers and stadium development at Howard Terminal.”
“The recycling industry including Schnitzer Steel works hard to make sure that abandoned cars, endoflife appliances and other sources of scrap metal do not end up discarded on city streets and in our neighborhoods,” the statement said, “and instead processes the scrap metal in an environmentally sustainable way so that it can be reused and turned into new products.”
Schnitzer said it will work with DTSC and the California Attorney General’s Office to evaluate their options to respond. It’s not clear yet if the ruling will be appealed.
DTSC said in a statement that the judge’s ruling requires the state agency to rescind Schnitzer’s approval to handle the residue as nonhazardous waste.
“The ruling provides DTSC and the State with clarity on the treatment of shredder waste, which will allow DTSC to better regulate this waste product,” a spokesperson for DTSC said.
Schnitzer is part of a coalition of opponents lined up against the Howard Terminal project that includes the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association, the Harbor Trucking Association and the California Trucking Association.
Neither Schnitzer nor DTSC immediately responded to requests for comment Wednesday.
In February, former State Attorney General Xavier Becerra ordered Schnitzer Steel to pay $4.1 million to settle claims that the firm released hazardous waste from its West Oakland facility.
The settlement required Schnitzer to pay penalties and fund environmental cleanup projects that help the surrounding neighborhoods. Schnitzer was also ordered to make changes to its Oakland facility to control toxic emissions.
Wednesday’s ruling clears yet another hurdle as the A’s move forward with plans to build a 35,000seat waterfront ballpark, 3,000 units of housing, 1.5 million square feet of offices, and 270,000 square feet of retail space at Howard Terminal.
Kaval said the team is pushing hard on city staff and the City Council to get a vote on the project this year. The team’s lease with the Coliseum ends in 2024.
Construction of the first phase of the Howard Terminal project, which includes the ballpark, could take at least two years. The entire development could take eight years to build.