State Legislature passes AB40: to require environmental review of coal projects

  • California State Capitol. Image credit: Andre M via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

“Today, the California legislature passed Assembly Bill 40, the Community First Coal Review Act by Assemblymember Mia Bonta, a bill to protect Californians from dusty, toxic coal pollution. The bill now heads to the Governor’s desk to await his signature. If signed into law, developers of enormous bulk coal facilities, like the one proposed in West Oakland, will have to fully disclose their projects’ impacts and develop effective mitigation measures before they are granted approval.”

That’s today’s great news, courtesy of Earthjustice’s press release. The bill was co-sponsored by Earthjustice and the West Oakland Environmental Indicators project. Again, from the press release:

“West Oakland will not become a sacrifice zone for the fossil fuel industry,” said Veronica Eady, Executive Director of the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project. “Our neighbors have fought against industrial pollution and corporate greed for decades, so we’re not about to let a major polluter come into our neighborhood without studying their impact, putting mitigations in place, and bringing community members to the table around decisions that affect their lives. We look forward to getting Assembly Bill 40 to the finish line.”

To take effect, the bill must be signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom by September 30, 2026.

Read the full press release here.

You can reach out to urge Gov. Newsom to sign AB40 into law … here is his official contact page.

 

 

 

Image: California State Capitol, Sacramento. Image credit: Andre M via Wikimedia, CC BY-SA 3.0.