SA Recycling management meets with residents regarding Koppel plant noises

KOPPEL – Borough leaders want to quiet a noisy situation that has been irritating local residents.

For many years, Koppel residents and people in nearby communities such as Big Beaver have heard what they’ve called "explosions."

According to residents speaking in public sessions and on social media, these jarring noises have caused them to be scared tremendously, some of them feeling like a vehicle crashed into their residence, while many have stated these explosions caused their houses and furniture to shake, with some believing the sound waves have caused property and foundation damage.

The noises have been coming from the scrap metal recycling plant along Westgate Drive in Koppel, borough leaders say.

Formally owned by PSC Metals LLC, it is now owned by SA Recycling LLC.

As an act of good faith, and hoping to repair the mental and physical damage to residents, leadership from the plant spoke Thursday at a town hall meeting at the Koppel Fire Hall.

Koppel Mayor Athena Pangikas-Miller said SA Recycling willingly reached out to borough officials in order to set up the meeting.

Those who attended included plant workers Ron and John Atkinson, plant general manager Fidel Padilla and Gary Hensley, the SA Recycling general manager for the northwest region.

What is causing the 'explosions?'

Hensley started off the town hall by explaining what is causing the loud noises.

He said the plant uses a powerful shredder tool that breaks down scrap in 20 seconds, which he describes as a “violent process.”

Hensley said there are times when there are spots in materials where pressure is built up, or items such as propane tanks are mixed in with the scrap, which he said caused the loud sounds.

“It’s a pressure release,” he said.

Concerns from residents

Residents who attended spoke about the problems they have been dealing with in regard to the loud noises, which they and Hensley described as “sonic booms.”

Some residents said the explosions happen at random and inopportune times, such as late in the evening or in the middle of the night.

For example, Big Beaver Councilman Garrett Schriver said an explosion took place around 10:13 p.m. May 15, while Koppel Council President Barbara Gioffre said there were multiple ones at night the same week, one of which literally shook her in her bed.

“It sounded like we were literally in a warzone,” she said.

Schriver said the sounds are like gunshots or bombs going off.

“These are occurring every few nights,” he said. “You’re terrifying people. You’re scaring kids.”

Other residents spoke about being terrified by the loud and sudden noises, with one resident stating it is a “living nightmare,” and said every time it happens, her heart jumps down to her stomach.

Other residents said they believe the sounds and the vibrations are causing damage to their doors, windows and furniture, with some believing the noises are causing structural damage and cracks to the foundations of their homes.

One resident shared his concern over veterans who live in the area, saying loud noises like that could trigger stress or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in them.

SA management addresses concerns

Hensley said he is aware of the long-standing issues that have plagued residents and that SA Recycling is willing to take accountability and action to solve this problem.

“It is a much more serious problem than I thought it was,” he said. “We don’t want them to happen, period.”

Hensley said he is sympathetic and apologetic to the residents who have been putting up with this, adding the company doesn't want to ignore the situation and become the “pariah” across the street.

“We’re not PSC. We want to do the right thing,” he said.

Hensley said when it comes to matters such as broken windows, doors, and furniture, SA would be willing to compensate residents for damage.

However, he said in his over 30 years of experience, he has never heard of loud shredder noises ruining the structural integrity of a building.

Hensley said it is not impossible, and he doesn’t want to discredit the residents, but said they would have to hire an engineer to prove structural damages were caused by the noises before any compensation is given.

Hensley said as a veteran himself, he is more than aware of the dangers of PTSD in veterans and doesn’t want them to go through that.

Solutions to the problem

Hensley said since the plant was only acquired by SA Recycling in February, the company is still in the transitional phase and trying to get everything structured.

Despite that, he said the company will immediately take action to try and mitigate, and eventually resolve the problem.

“We’re going to get better, and we’re going to make life a lot better,” Hensley said.

He said the company will be working to transition to working during the daytime, instead of at night like before.

Hensley said when the plant was under PSC it was more beneficial and less expensive to run the shredder during “non-peak hours” for electricity, dependent on the season.

Now, he said SA, through its contract, can get the same electric rate no matter what time in the day the shredder is in operation.

Hensley said the company will do a better job of checking scrap and holding its suppliers accountable for sending in materials like propane tanks.

He said the suppliers will get two warnings, and on the third offense, the company will move on and not use them again.

Padilla said workers log everything that comes in, but said there are times, based on the large amounts of scrap that comes in daily that materials such as propane tanks sneak in.

He added a lot of times the tanks are left in the scrap vehicles. He said the plant accepts empty propane tanks and they are placed in a separate bin to be disposed of appropriately.

Hensley said the whole SA Recycling company, in all regions, is currently short-staffed when it comes to workers and inspectors.

Hensley added the ultimate goal, to solve the problem, would be for the company to purchase a “pre-shredder” machine, which could cost at least $1 million.

He said the machine, as the name implies, goes through materials before they are put in the regular shredder.

Hensley said he did not want to give a definitive timeframe of when the company will purchase and set up the pre-shredder.

He also wanted to say he can’t guarantee the matters mentioned before will completely prevent explosions before the pre-shredder, but said he hopes they are steps in the right direction.

Wanting to be a good neighbor

Hensley said not only does the company want to stop the explosions from happening, but said they want to be as good of a neighbor to residents as it can be.

He said SA gets involved with every community they are in, such as helping with training for fire departments, and are paying for stuff such as fencing and bleachers for ballfields.

“What can we do to improve the community?” Hensley asked.

Gioffre said it feels good that the company is willing to listen to residents’ concerns and wants to help out.

She also thanked Padilla, who has been with the company for four years, stating the plant, when it was under PSC management, helped out the borough at times, such as getting a borough backhoe out of a ditch.

“We’re neighbors,” Gioffre said.

In the meantime, Hensley said the company will work on making a release for residents explaining what was covered in the town hall and the future actions they will take.

Pangikas-Miller said she would distribute that release to borough residents and to officials from the surrounding communities.

Hensley also left his email to Pangikas-Miller, to give out to residents, if they wish to report any concerns or damages caused by the noises.

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Nicholas Vercilla is a staff reporter for the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at nvercilla@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: SA Recycling in Koppel promises to limit explosion noises