Schnitzer fends off baseball-related lawsuit

An appeals court in California has ruled in favor of Portland-based Schnitzer Steel Industries in its effort to fend off a lawsuit from the Oakland Athletics.

Although the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) has been known to monitor metals shredding operations carefully, in this case the agency’s previous classification of Schnitzer metal grades and residue as nonhazardous worked in the recycling company’s favor. The California First District Court of Appeal cited the DTSC classification in overturning a previous ruling in the baseball team’s favor.

According to a report from the San Francisco Chronicle, a three-judge panel of the appeals court ruled “there is no threat to human health or the environment from managing treated metal-shredder waste as nonhazardous.” The unanimous ruling was authored by Justice Alison Tucher.

The decades-old auto and metal shredding plant has been in the crosshairs of the Oakland baseball team amidst its proposed stadium development plans for waterfront property at Howard Terminal, near the Schnitzer property.

According to the newspaper, Schnitzer is not showing a willingness to move from its Oakland site and is among a group of waterfront ballpark opponents that also includes the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association and some trucking organizations.

For now, the Court of Appeal ruling overturns a county judge’s 2021 finding in favor of the Athletics, who have not yet indicated whether they will keep the lawsuit alive.