By Dr. Ken Chambers and Margaret Gordon

A community rally to keep coal out of Oakland will be held on Saturday, July 22, from noon to 1:30 p.m. at 732 Willow St.

Organized by the Interfaith Council of Alameda County (ICAC) and No Coal in Oakland, the rally will feature music, food, and speakers including residents, activists, and officials.

A state court trial beginning July 10 may determine whether coal is going to be transported from Utah to Oakland — spewing toxic particles along the way — and then shipped overseas to be burned, contributing to the climate crisis.

At stake in the trial is a proposed terminal on the Oakland waterfront that pits the City of Oakland against companies owned by Oakland-born developer Phil Tagami who wants to build and operate a marine terminal in West Oakland on land leased from the City.

In 2018, the developers failed to meet construction deadlines set forth in their 66-year lease. Oakland terminated the lease, as the contract stipulates, and sued to evict them.

The city wants the developers to leave, freeing the property for other uses. The developers want to stay and to substantially lower their rent and receive hundreds of millions of dollars for alleged lost income.

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Settlement negotiations have not resolved these differences. Although the developers claim that they are willing to agree not to use the terminal for coal, they haven’t been willing to agree to language that locks in a no-coal stipulation for the life of the lease.

They periodically threaten that “coal is back on the table.” And they won’t commit to building infrastructure for shipping commodities other than coal.

A 2018 federal trial reversed the City Council’s unanimous ban on coal at the site. The judge claimed that the City of Oakland had not provided sufficient evidence that coal dust due to the terminal would pose a substantial danger to residents and workers.

At the same time, the judge explicitly acknowledged that the City is free to pass a new ban on coal at the property once more scientific support is available. We now have this new evidence: a recent study of coal storage and transport in Richmond documents significant pollution from trains, holding yards, and a terminal handling coal from Utah.

This new research complements overwhelming scientific evidence that increased exposure to such air pollutants causes serious medical problems. It is linked to decreased lung capacity and increased bronchitis, asthma, pneumonia, emphysema, cancer, and heart disease.

Coal dust would increase the existing health disparities in West Oakland, which is surrounded by three freeways, with heavy industry, diesel trucks, and port traffic. West Oakland starkly illustrates environmental injustice.

The City has been steadfast in opposing coal. If you appreciate their fight for residents’ health and safety, you can show your support at the community rally on Saturday, July 22, from noon to 1:30 p.m. at 732 Willow St., West Side Missionary Baptist Church-ICAC Hub

Supported by Care 4 Community Organization.

This Advetorial was sponsored by:

• No Coal in Oakland
• Interfaith Council of Alameda County
• Care 4 Community Action

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