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4-3-2009 Bids Sought for Waste-by-Rail Access Road - News Article
Construction is expected to begin soon on the first phase of the waste-by-rail project that will supply the Mesquite Region Landfill with municipal solid waste for disposal. The Sanitation District of Los Angeles County is seeking bids for construction of an access road for an intermodal facility to be built in the City of Industry where trains will be loaded with containerized trash for disposal at the Mesquite Regional Landfill, located about 5 miles east of Glamis.
“The access road is just the first step in the development of the Puente Hills Intermodal Facility that is an important component in developing a regional, environmentally responsible solid waste project,” said Janet Coke, manager of the Sanitation Districts waste-by-rail project.
The intermodal facility, located adjacent to the Sanitation Districts’ Puente Hills Landfill and material recovery facility (MRF), is expected to be completed by 2011/12. Work on the access road, known as the Workman Mill Road project, is estimated to cost $30 million. The project will provide access to a 17-acre site on which the Sanitation Districts plans to build an intermodal rail facility that will cost an estimated $150 million.
When the intermodal facility is in operation, containerized municipal solid waste will be loaded onto trains for the 200 mile trip to the state-of-the-art Mesquite Regional Landfill.
Construction of the Mesquite Regional Landfill was completed in December. The Mesquite Regional Landfill is permitted to receive up to 20,000 tons per day (tpd) of municipal solid waste, which has been sorted to remove recyclable and hazardous materials. Up to 1,000 tpd of what the Mesquite Regional Landfill receives is reserved for Imperial County waste.
At full operation, the Mesquite Regional Landfill will employ about 250 people and annually pay Imperial County fees totaling about $17 million.
The Sanitation Districts’ bidding process started for the Workman Mill Road project after permits for the Puente Hills Intermodal Facility were issued by the City of Industry last summer and design work was completed. The intermodal facility is designed to handle up to two trains a day, each carrying 4,000 tons of processed municipal solid waste.
Later this year, the Sanitation Districts expects to go out for bids for construction of a 5-mile rail spur to connect the Mesquite Regional Landfill with Union Pacific’s main rail line near Glamis. An intermodal facility also will be development at the Mesquite Regional Landfill site to unload the containerized trash and reload empty containers.
“It has been a long time in coming because we have worked hard to develop an environmentally responsible, long term solid waste solution that also provides economic benefits and jobs for Imperial County,” Coke said.
While work continues on the rail project, the Sanitation Districts has proposed modifying the Mesquite Regional Landfill permits issued by Imperial County. The Sanitation Districts has requested that Imperial County allow the trucking of a limited amount of waste to allow flexibility as the landfill ramps up to full operation.
The proposed permit modification seeks to truck up to 4,000 tpd of waste, 1/5th of what the landfill is permitted to receive. A draft environmental impact report, including air and traffic studies of the proposal, is expected to be released later this year.
