CBE In the News

Here you can find a collection of recent examples of how CBE has caught the attention of mainstream media. 

• CBE WINS CASE AGAINST CHEVRON… AGAIN! PRESS RELEASE: Appeals Court Upholds Environmental Justice in Richmond Environmental Impact Report for refinery expansion ruled inadequate

• Communities for a Better Environment Wins Lawsuit Against Chevron!

• CBE held the second annual ‘Love Yo Mama’ Earth Day in East Oakland on April 24. Weaving health and environmental justice.
  “Green is Good for the Hood,” was this years theme. The unique, distinctly Black and Brown celebration pushes young people and their families to organize to address environmental issues and make healthier food choices.
  

• State Supreme Court faults AQMD for error by Maura Dolan March 15, 2010 LA Times A group called Communities for a Better Environment, labor organizations and individuals who live or work near the ConocoPhillips refinery sued the air ...
  

• CBS 5, March 15, 2010 -- "A coalition of environmental groups, unions and citizens won a ruling from the California Supreme Court in San Francisco Monday requiring further study of a Los Angeles oil refinery upgrade." Click here for full article.

• Chevron's fight with Richmond intensifies by David R. Baker, Chronicle Staff Writer January 30, 2010 Greg Karras has heard the talk about Chevron Corp. possibly pulling out of Richmond. He isn't buying it…

• Chevron’s recent announcement that it is considering scaling back some of its global operations this year spawned some nasty rumors that CBE members are asking about.
  Read more on Why refineries might shutdown in 2010!
  

• CBE on Climate KPFA December 7, 2009
  On the first day of the climate talks in Copenhagen, many local Bay Area activist lockdown three gates at Chevron world headquarters in San Ramon, California. Nile Malloy, Program Director of CBE Norcal talks about Chevron's Dirty Crude oil refining plans & how this will effect local Richmond community and global climate change.

  The Morning Show - December 7, 2009 at 7:00am
  
  Click to listen (or download)

• Chevron in Richmond by Ellen Choy and Ana Orozco Richmond is home to over 100,000 people, approximately 82 percent of whom are listed as minorities by the United States Census. Seventeen thousand people live within just three miles of the [Chevron] refinery—some of them in the two housing projects located there. The majority are low-income people of color.

• The Case Against Chevron by Peter Asmus East Bay Express Dec 2, 2009 The Case Against Chevron published Dec 2, 2009 East Bay Express An unprecedented campaign by at least a dozen nonprofit groups targets the oil company's global operations and reputation. Features Communities for a Better Environment and other allies working on Chevron campaigns all around the world.

• Read CBE's New Report, Cumulative Impacts:  Changing Regulatory Culture to Address Environmental Injustice and Environmental Racism. The report focuses on the Los Angeles region examining three case studies and making recommendations to the decision-makers.

• Community Stops Dirty Power Plant in Southeast Los Angeles!!

• An Important Case of Environmental Injustice:  The Unlawful Expansion of Industrial Services Oil  company (a hazardous waste facility) in East Los Angeles. Read CBE’s letter to the Los Angeles Councilmember Jose Huizar

• Falling Through the Climate Gap July 27, 2009 Robert Carbales, a 28-year-old organizer with the local advocacy group Communities for a Better Environment, says the political marginalization of immigrant households makes Huntington prime real estate for polluters.

• Construction Halted at Richmond Chevron Refinery CBS 5 Tuesday July 14, 2009 Watch...

• Community Groups Welcome AG’s Offer to Mediate Chevron Expansion Dispute- CBE Press Release July 22, 2009 Richmond, CA – Community groups welcomed California Attorney General Jerry Brown's offer, to mediate negotiations with Chevron and the City of Richmond over a court-ordered halt to the company’s refinery expansion.

• Cheveron owes more to Richmond, CA July 17, 2009 This week, Fortune magazine released its list of the 500 largest corporations in the world. With a nearly 25 percent increase in its revenues from 2007, Chevron Corp. moved from the sixth to the fifth largest corporation in the world.

• Community and Public Health Advocates Halt Chevron
  Refinery Expansion at Richmond, CA July 2, 2009 Martinez, CA – Contra Costa County Superior Court Judge Barbara Zuniga has ordered an injunction stopping work on Chevron’s refinery expansion project in Richmond, CA designed to allow processing of heavier, dirtier crude.

• CBE Releases New Report, "Richmond Health Survey Report, June 2009"Communities for a Better Environment together with collaborators from Brown University, UC Berkeley, and Silent Spring Institute, launched a health survey in Richmond. The survey was focused on residents living in the Iron Triangle area and North Richmond. We asked residents a variety of questions about their health, their family members’ health and their neighborhood.

• Court: Chevron Refinery Must Redo Environmental Review in Richmond, CA On June 4th 2009, Contra Costa County Superior Court Judge Barbara Zuniga tossed out the Environmental Impact Report for a major expansion at the Chevron Refinery, in Richmond, California. Access all Press on the Contra Costa County Court's decision on CBE's news blog.

• CBE Releases New Report, "The Increasing Burden of Oil Refineries & Fossil Fuels in Wilmington, CA and How to Clean them Up! CBE's new report documents the heaviest concentration in California of oil refineries in the Wilmington/Carson area in Los Angeles County. About 85% latino, the Wilmington area is a prime example of communities of color bearing more than the fair share of pollution.

• Now its official; The Poor & People of Color get the Dirty Air - RaceWire May 6, 2009: The American Lung Association recently released a study containing a list of the most polluted cities, which include Los Angeles, Bakersfield, Sacramento: if policymakers and organizations intend to work towards healthier and cleaner communities, they must recognize the existence of systemic environmental racism.

March 2007 was a powerful month on Television and Radio for CBE.  We fought the oil industry on flare minimization plans and expansions.  We were effective in our ability to show that oil refineries are one of the worst pollutants of our children, neighborhoods and homes.

Keeping close relationships with journalist have gave our Communities a voice in the Newspapers.

Do you know of any media coverage that we might have missed?  Contact one of the organizers in your area and let them know:

Southern California (323) 826-9771

Roberto Cabrales
Community Organizer (Southeast LA) Ext. 107
rcabrales@cbecal.org

Jennifer Ganata
Community Organizer (Wilmington) Ext. 103
jennifer@cbecal.org

Northern California (510) 302 0430

Nehanda Imara
Community Organizer (Oakland) Ext. 21
nimara@cbecal.org

Jessica Tovar
Community Organizer (Richmond) Ext. 24
jessica@cbecal.org