AB40 signed into law: mandates new EIR for proposed coal terminal

  • "Bulk Terminal Animation" submitted to City of Oakland's Planning Department by Insight Terminal Solutions on August 28, 2026.

Responding to a vigorous campaign by climate, environmental justice, faith, labor, and public health advocates, as well as the urging of County Supervisor Nikki Fortunato Bas and city governments in Richmond, Emeryville, and Berkeley, Governor Gavin Newsom today signed the Community First Coal Review Act (AB40) into law.

Before a lead agency or air district can grant discretionary approval of a large coal storage, handling, or export facility, the new law mandates an Environmental Impact Report (EIR), California’s “gold standard” environmental review. 

This legislation will ensure that the enormous coal export terminal proposed for West Oakland will be required to fully disclose environmental impacts and live up to developers’ promises of a state-of-the-art facility because impacts will need to be mitigated to the maximum feasible extent.

“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.”

No Coal in Oakland opposes any use of our publicly-owned waterfront for the shipment of coal from Utah or Wyoming to Asia, and doubts investors will be found to build a state-of-the-art terminal. A newly released report commissioned by the Rural Utah Infrastructure Coalition to support investment in the project estimates it would take 53 months to build the project as currently proposed, assuming it is not delayed by permitting or environmental review. That report estimates the cost of construction between $430M and $625M, significantly higher than estimates put forward by developers and by the Trump administration.

Crucially, before it can break ground, the project will need a permit from the Bay Area Air District. Seventy organizations and more than 3,000 Bay Area residents have signed an open letter to the Bay Area Air District, circulated by No Coal in Oakland, calling on the Air District to exercise its full regulatory and permitting authority in reviewing the project.

Oakland’s Assemblymember Mia Bonta introduced AB 40 shortly after Trump’s June announcement. The bill soon picked up co-authors Senators Jesse Arreguín and Henry Stern and  Assemblymembers Stephen Bennett, Liz Ortega, and Chris Rogers. The bill was co-sponsored by Earthjustice and the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project.

 

 

Image: Still from “Bulk Terminal Animation,” illustrating operation of the proposed coal terminal as currently designed, including two open-air “bunkers” with combined storage capacity of 300,000 tons of coal. The animation was submitted to City of Oakland’s Planning Department by Insight Terminal Solutions on August 28, 2026.