Potential New Business for Port of Redwood City

The Redwood City Port Commission has approved a mitigated negative declaration and initial study for a proposed carbon black pilot production facility.  The action was a harbinger to negotiating an agreement, which could come to the Commission for approval in January.

            Carbon black is a material used in manufacturing nearly all black rubber and plastic products including tires, belts, hoses, and cables. 

            Boxer Industries, Inc.’s pilot plant would use readily available natural gas as the carbon feedstock and a clean process with no emissions of air pollutants. The proposed pilot plant would be constructed on approximately 0.6 acres near the Kaiser Cement silos. It would include a 5,000 square foot pilot plant, office trailer, and parking.  The pilot plant would be partially assembled prior to delivery and installation.  It would be constructed on a new, pier supported, concrete pad and would be about 30 feet in height when fully assembled. 

            The plant will produce approximately 180 metric tons per year which will be packaged into large sacks and loaded on to trucks (25 truck trips annually) for shipment to customers.  Operating hours for the pilot plant are typically 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. five days a week.  Three workers would be on site during operating hours and at times up to 11 support engineers located in offices in Pacific Shores Center.  Any future expansion of the facility from pilot plant to full production would require a separate environmental review.

            Today, carbon blacks are used as a pigmenting, UV stabilizing and conductive agent in a variety of common and specialty products, including plastics, toners and printing inks, and coatings.

            The mitigated negative declaration document found that the environmental effects by the proposed project can be mitigated to less than significant levels.  Air quality impacts are associated with construction activities and include dust and emissions from the operation of construction equipment and can be mitigated during the estimated two to four week construction period. 

             Air emissions from the pilot plant itself are well below BAAQMD thresholds.  Recommendation by a geotechnical engineer will be incorporated into the building design and approved by the Redwood City Building Department.  Mitigation measures require the preparation of a Soils Management Plan, based on site conditions, that includes a health and safety plan prepared by an industrial hygienist.  Any contaminated soil resulting from construction activities must be tested and profiled for acceptable disposal.