State Senate Approves Bills to Slow Coal But Will Jerry Sign?
This week the state Senate passed two bills sponsored by Sen. Loni Hancock that could present significant roadblocks for developer Phil Tagami’s plan to build a $250 million bulk commodities terminal and turn Oakland into a major coal export hub.
SB 1277 – which the Senate approved Wednesday on a 25-13 vote – would require additional environmental review for the plan to ship up to 10 million tons of coal per year through Oakland.
A companion bill, SB 1279 – which the Senate approved Thursday on a 25-9 vote – would prohibit the California Transportation ...
TLS deception on coal dust exposure: uncovered
Terminal Logistics Solutions (TLS), the company that aims to transport dirty coal through Oakland at perilous risk to public health, has been spinning fictions about safety measures they claim will mitigate health risks -- measures which have never been tested for effectiveness, contrary to repeated claims by TLS.
In a thorough and well-documented investigation, NCIO's Lora Jo Foo has unmasked the truth that the "proven technology" TLS claims it will use to cover rail cars carrying coal have never been tested for effectiveness in controlling fugitive coal dust.
Wo...
“Ban Coal Now!” Yard Signs: Help Oakland Say No To Coal!
Oakland needs you to put up a "Ban Coal Now!" yard sign.
As the City Council's June 27th vote approaches let's show council members, Mayor Schaaf, and our neighbors that 92% opposition to a coal export terminal found by State Senator Loni Hancock in a recent survey was and remains Oakland's final answer.
Our communities -- especially in West Oakland -- have suffered too long and too deeply from highly-polluting transportation technology. Coal dust, a product of the dirtiest fossil fuel on Earth, would imperil the health of workers and endanger communities along ...
Oakland doesn’t need an oil train disaster
Oakland's Mayor Schaaf and councilmembers' know how dangerous it would be to permit oil transport through a port surrounded by communities they were elected to protect and serve. NCIO provided them a partial list of tanker car spills and pipeline explosions that have occurred over the past three years.
Jerry Brown Remains Silent on Coal as His Financial Ties to Developer Are Exposed
Jerry Brown has a six-figure investment in Edgewater Park Plaza, an East Oakland office park that is owned and managed by CCIG, the company leading the charge to transport dirty coal through Oakland.
Despite his preening declaration that "90% of the coal must stay in the ground" at the Vatican and in Paris last year, Jerry Brown is a "climate pretender," not the climate hawk he purports to be, say activists from No Coal in Oakland. Despite entreaties from Jesuit priests, health care providers, NCIO supporters, the San Francisco Chronicle, and other opponents of ...
City Council Sets June 27 Date for Vote on Coal
Above: Artist's rendition of an ordinance regulating coal.
On May 3 the Oakland City Council took major steps towards adopting an ordinance relating to the threatened use of the Oakland Bulk and Oversize Terminal (OBOT) for storage and export of coal.
The Council unanimously agreed to hold a first vote on a ordinance at a special meeting on Monday, June 27, starting at 5:00. It will be the only item on the agenda. Any ordinance must be voted upon at two separate meetings, and holding a first vote in June means the ban on coal sought by No Coal in Oakland could be ...
Senator Loni Hancock: 92% of constituents oppose Oakland coal-export terminal
California Senator Loni Hancock (District 9) reports that 92% of respondents to her office's survey oppose the proposed coal-export terminal in Oakland.
11 East Bay Mayors Condemn Oakland Coal Plan
Mayors of 11 East Bay cities have sent a letter to Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and the Oakland City Council urging them not to allow coal to be shipped from a marine terminal under development at the former Oakland Army Base.
Utah Gov. Signs Bill to Fund Oakland Coal Terminal
Utah Gov. Gary Herbert this week signed a bill appropriating $53 million in state money to fund construction of a coal export facility in Oakland.
For over a year, Bowie Resource Partners, a Kentucky-based coal company with mines in central Utah, had been attempting to line up $53 million in the form of a loan to four counties from the Community Impact Board (CIB), an agency that disburses grants and loans to mitigate the impacts of extractive industries on federal land within their boundaries. Such localities receive no tax revenues from federal land so the federal ...
NCIO Rips Developer’s Op Ed Piece in S.F. Chronicle
No Coal in Oakland answers developer Mark McClure's misinformation-laden op ed piece published March 14 in the S.F. Chronicle.