WHEN: Wed, Sept 12, 12:00 to 1:30 PM
WHERE: Marriott Marquis Hotel, 780 Mission St, SF
RSVP here!
Come protest the Bank of Montreal’s involvement in financing Oakland's unwanted coal terminal. We will be demonstrating outside the conference of Principles for Responsible Investment, running concurrently with Global Climate Action Summit.
Inside the conference, bankers and investors will be discussing responsible investment. Outside, we will be asking why the Bank of Montreal won't renounce its plan to finance the Oakland coal terminal.
The Bank of Montreal has been instrumental in attempting to raise the funds to finance the proposed coal terminal on the Oakland waterfront. They lobbied to get $50 million from the State of Utah and proposed to raise $200 million from pension funds, downplaying if not outright concealing that coal is involved.
We want to stop the Bank of Montreal (which claims to practice socially responsible financing) and warn pension funds and other institutions that they may be targeted for this toxic and risky investment.
This is an informational event with leafletting, colorful banners, creative picket signs, chants, singing, and possible street theater.
You can also sign the open letter to the Bank of Montreal online here.
Background:
In May, a judge overturned Oakland’s ban on coal storage and handling. The city is considering its options to protect the community from the harmful impacts of coal exports and allow the bulk export facility at the Oakland Army Base redevelopment to move forward without compromising public health and safety. In the meantime, the terminal developer is moving forward to secure financing.
We want to see a bulk export facility that creates good, healthy jobs and economic opportunity for the community. But terminals that ship coal provide far fewer jobs than terminals that ship containers or general cargo.
The transport, storage, and loading/unloading of bulk coal releases coal dust, which contains mercury, lead, arsenic, and particulate matter. Coal dust exposure is linked to decreased lung capacity, increased childhood bronchitis, asthma, pneumonia, emphysema, and heart disease. West Oakland, where the coal would be handled and stored, is already struggling with the severe air pollution.