|
| ||||||
|
West Oakland Residents Picket Red Star Yeast factory, Pack Public Hearing! June 20th, 2002
See Also: Read the fact sheet! Read about the May 20th meeting, and Oakland Tribune coverage of the meeting! Read the SF Gate Story on Environment Injustice in West Oakland!
For more information, contact:
|
Community and Greenaction Denounce Red Star's Pollution...and Air District's Complicity
Protest at Polluter's Front Gate! Fifty West Oakland residents and Greenaction members picketed at the Red Star Yeast factory in West Oakland on Tuesday, June 18th to demand an end to the toxic pollution and foul odors emanating from this plant. Tired of the odors and annual emissions of 30,000 pounds of the cancer-causing chemical acetaldehyde into the air of the community, residents are demanding that Red Star get out of their neighborhood. Residents and Greenaction want Red Star to move to a more remote industrial area - and install the best available control technology to reduce emissions of odors and carcinogens. Air District Ignores the Stink...Again! Minutes after the protest began, strong odors came from the factory into the air of the neighborhood. About fifteen people called the odor complaint line established by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District supposedly so they could respond to such complaints. The Air District policies say that they will only cite a polluter for an emissions violation based on public complaints if five people complain and are present when an agency inspector shows up to verify the complaint - and if the inspector also observes or smells the problem. The inspector is supposed to show up promptly, which rarely happens. Although the people complaining about the odors were present at the factory site for nearly two hours, no Air District inspector ever showed up to verify the complaints. When the inspector called Greenaction the next day to discuss our complaints, she made the ridiculous claim that she did show up but could not find us (even though there were fifty of us in front of Red Star). As a result, Red Star once again will not be cited by the Air District for an odor nuisance even though there were so many witnesses to this odor nuisance. Residents Jam Public Hearing! At the June 20th public hearing, over 100 residents attended to demand that the Bay Area Air Quality Management District deny Red Star's application for a renewal of their five year Title V Clean Air Act permit. The hearing got off to a bad start when Steve Hill, Air District permit engineer, stated that the purpose of the hearing was to take public comment to "improve the permit" that the Air District was going to issue. In fact, that is not the purpose of a public hearing. Bradley Angel, Greenaction's Director, testified that the Air District was attempting to rubber stamp and railroad this permit application through in violation of the law. Angel pointed out that the purpose of a public hearing is to take testimony to determine if the facts mandated either an approval or denial, not just an approval. Greenaction testified that the Clean Air Act prohibits a polluter from getting a Title V permit if the company cannot "assure compliance" with a permit. As Red Star regularly emits foul odors into the community - and has done so for years - the company is violating their permit requirements that they not continue to commit odor nuisances. The Air District continues to ignore the ongoing odor nuisances and non-compliance with the permit - and repeatedly makes claims that the company is in compliance despite the ongoing odor nuisances. Dozens of residents spoke at the hearing, one after another documenting the foul odors that come from Red Star day and night. Residents also expressed concern about the emissions of cancer-causing chemicals coming from the plant, as they are also living next to many other sources of toxic pollution including a major vinyl chloride contamination site, freeways and diesel buses. Even the Oakland City Attorney joined residents in denouncing both Red Star's pollution and the Air District's pro-polluter policies. The City Attorney announced he had instructed his staff to pursue all available legal options against Red Star. The fight for community health will escalate! Frustrated by the rigged permit process and refusal of the Air District to protect public health, community leaders publicly vowed to block the front gates of the plant if left no other options. Greenaction will join residents in nonviolent action against this polluter if the government refused to protect the health of the community. |