California senators considering bill to shift regulation of scrap metal recyclers to the state

Metal shredding facilities handle challenging waste, such as old appliances, trashed cars, and scrap from disasters like urban fires, selling the reusable metal and disposing of the rest. Yet metal shredding and recycling can lead to the production of hazardous waste, including mercury, lead, and fire-resistant chemicals. The operations also pose risks to air quality and have been associated with scrap metal fire fires, like the one at Radius Recycling in August 2023.

SB 404 aims to standardize the permitting of these facilities and set clearer guidelines around their hazardous by-products. Proponents of the bill say it streamlines permitting and regulation of these facilities by consolidating this oversight in the state's Department of Toxic Substances Control while maintaining the benefits of recycling scrap metal — which might otherwise end up in landfill.

"SB404 will ensure that California has the robust regulatory process and remains a sustainable leader in reducing, reusing, and recycling by fostering the recycling of scrap metal," Caballero said at a Senate committee hearing in July.

Metal recycling advocates say that the lack of clear oversight has left metal recyclers in a state of uncertainty and that the bill would create a clear structure for permitting and fees.

"SB 404 provides enforceable standards that will both protect neighboring communities and advance critical recycling in California," said Margaret Rosegay, a representative of the California Metal Recyclers Coalition, at the July committee meeting. "The legal and regulatory certainty this bill provides is essential for the future viability of this critical industry and the thousands of employees, businesses. and communities that rely upon it."

Some California environmental groups, including the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, have opposed the bill, saying it could lead to further environmental harm. As the bill currently stands, it would shift regulatory oversight from local authorities to the state and certify that "metal shredder aggregate" — the mixture of shredded metallic and nonmetallic materials produced by the shredding process — is not hazardous waste. It would also establish that any recyclers that comply with state permitting requirements would not be considered "hazardous waste facilities," which is how some of the facilities are currently designated.

"SB 404 would categorically exclude hazardous waste generated at metal shredding facilities from the definition of hazardous waste," Alameda County's Board of Supervisors wrote in a statement of opposition. "SB 404 would codify an existing regulatory loophole that has allowed metal shredding facilities to avoid stricter hazardous waste regulations" and "strip local government agencies of critical enforcement authority."

Nicole Meriso Tsui, a West Oakland resident who directs strategic partnerships for the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, came to speak at the July hearing. Tsui called the bill a "direct threat" to communities like West Oakland who sit next to these facilities and already face an increased environmental burden due to their proximity to industrial areas.

"SB 404 does nothing to require the strong protections these communities deserve," Tsui said. "Instead, it hands control over to the very industry responsible for the contamination."

Alameda County sued Radius Recycling over its August 2023 scrap fire for violations of the state's Hazardous Waste Control Law. The county claims that under SB 404 it wouldn't have the right to take such action and that the bill could lead to "more fires and other serious incidents."

"Given the history of serious incidents in Alameda County and throughout California resulting from negligence and/or alleged criminal conduct by the owners and operators of metal shredding facilities," the county wrote, "the regulatory frameworks should be more protective of public health, safety, and environmental impact." The bill has been referred to the Senate's Appropriations Committee.