By Jacob Klein
Earlier this year, Contra Costa County was poised to approve new oil and gas wells near neighborhoods in Brentwood. The proposed drilling sites would be less than 1,000 feet away from homes with families and children. When the public found out, there was an incredible outcry, the result of which will be a more open and thorough consideration of the proposal's impacts on the environment and public health.
Leading environmental organizations like Sunflower Alliance, 350 Bay Area, SF Baykeeper, Center for Biological Diversity and more worked with a new and powerful group of local activists calling themselves No Drilling in Brentwood. These community members kicked off a grassroots movement to oppose the County's plan to issue a "negative declaration" for the project that would have allowed it to move forward without studying its possible consequences. Public outrage was channeled into a campaign to submit public comments to the Contra Costa County Planning Department asking for a thorough environmental review of the proposal.
Thanks to public pressure, the Contra Costa County Department of Conservation and Development has decided to undertake greater environmental review to see what possible impacts could come from this project. We already know that oil and gas extraction produces toxic air pollution, with health impacts on local communities that include asthma, cancer, respiratory illness, and more. Other risks include water contamination, spills of toxic chemicals, and explosions.
As the environmental review process moves forward, we’ll have opportunities later this year to let our voices be heard to support the health of our communities.
Graphic courtesy cleanbreak.info.