LA updates EIR for near-dock rail project

   The Port of Los Angeles has revised its draft Environmental Impact Report for the planned construction of a near-dock intermodal container-truck transfer facility to be operated by the BNSF Railway.
   The new document for the Southern California International Gateway (SCIG) is being recirculated for public comment. 
   The 153-acre industrial site is located about four miles north of the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and is currently used for transloading, warehousing, container and trailer maintenance and storage. About two-third of the proposed site is on port property.
    BNSF plans to spend about $500 million to build the intermodal container transfer facility, which would have a capacity of 1.5 million containers per year at full build out. Officials say the project will make train service more efficient, reduce trucks on area highways and provide direct connections to the Alameda Corridor, a rail trench that connects the port area with rail yards near downtown Los Angeles.
   The near-dock rail facility will be used to build trains with containers for multiple destinations, whereas on-dock rail facilities typically load containers heading to the same destination.
   The Port of Los Angeles issued its original EIR for the intermodal rail facility in September 2011. The updated document includes a 2010 baseline analysis instead of data from 2005, analysis of operations for a 50-year period instead of 30 years, a 2009 cargo demand forecast for Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach instead of the 2007 forecast, and updated air quality models, traffic, noise and census data.
   The public has 45 days to comment on the revised EIR, which is available here. Comments, which are limited to the revised portions of the EIR, will be received through Nov. 9.
   A public hearing to receive comments on the document will be held Oct. 18, 6-8 p.m., at Banning’s Landing Community Center at 100 E. Water Street in nearby Wilmington. – Eric Kulisch