The Bay Area port city of Pittsburg is considering an application to rebuild and upgrade an existing oil terminal that would receive the explosive crude-by-rail from North Dakota, and residents are making their opposition heard.
The radio report by KQED's Molly Samuel begins with a demonstration against the oil terminal proposal located in an industrial area that includes a power plant in this port city on the Sacramento River Delta about 20 miles east of Oakland.
"WesPac Energy–Pittsburg LLC (WesPac) proposes to modernize and reactivate the existing marine terminal, oil storage and transfer facilities..." according to the project description. Opponents charge that it is "near the heart of downtown Pittsburg (and) would be right next to homes, parks, churches, and school". A 2012 Contra Costa Times article states, "According to the draft environmental report..., the proposed facility would be located on 125 acres of land within the GenOn power plant property, close to homes."
The facility is ideally located to serve nearby refineries. While the terminal would receive the crude by rail as well as ship and pipeline, it would then "be shipped by pipelines to serve the Shell and Tesoro Golden Eagle refineries in Martinez, the Conoco Phillips refinery in Rodeo and the Valero refinery in Benicia," writes Eve Mitchell of the Contra Costa Times.
Samuel writes that crude-by-rail (CBR) shipments to California are on the rise. While CBR "accounts for a little less than two percent of all the oil California uses now, that may be changing. WesPac is one of six crude-by-rail projects being considered in the state. If they all get approved, rail could provide a quarter or more of California’s oil, according to the California Energy Commission."
According to the Calif. Energy Commission Energy Almanac, 62% of the state's oil was imported from abroad and Alaska in 2011. Switching to Bakken crude would reduce costs as it is traded on the West Texas Intermediate benchmark.
FULL STORY: Bay Area Residents Resist Crude-by-Rail as Accidents Rise
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
San Francisco's School District Spent $105M To Build Affordable Housing for Teachers — And That's Just the Beginning
SFUSD joins a growing list of school districts using their land holdings to address housing affordability challenges faced by their own employees.
The Tiny, Adorable $7,000 Car Turning Japan Onto EVs
The single seat Mibot charges from a regular plug as quickly as an iPad, and is about half the price of an average EV.
Seattle's Plan for Adopting Driverless Cars
Equity, safety, accessibility and affordability are front of mind as the city prepares for robotaxis and other autonomous vehicles.
As Trump Phases Out FEMA, Is It Time to Flee the Floodplains?
With less federal funding available for disaster relief efforts, the need to relocate at-risk communities is more urgent than ever.
With Protected Lanes, 460% More People Commute by Bike
For those needing more ammo, more data proving what we already knew is here.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Smith Gee Studio
City of Charlotte
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)