Andeavor’s Martinez Refinery. Photo courtesy of Andeavor.com
Nine Appointed to 2020 Census Complete Count Steering Committee
By Daniel Borsuk
Since passage of Contra Costa’s Industrial Safety Ordinance (ISO) in December 1998, the landmark law hammered out between the refinery industry and local government has played a major role in driving down the number of deadly chemical incidents in the county.
On Tuesday, the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors heard Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA), representative Shanelle Scales-Preston read a letter from the congressman about the importance of ISO’s enactment:
“The creation of the Industrial Safety Ordinance was one of the most impactful proposals I have been involved in throughout my 35 years in public service. As a member of the Board of Supervisors at the time of the Tosco explosion in 1997, we reacted immediately to put an end to corporate profits coming at the expense of safety. We partnered with labor, industry, environmental groups, and safety experts to draft the Industrial Safety Ordinance.
“The results speak for themselves. The severity of major chemical accidents or releases in Contra Costa County has declined since its implementation. During the 1990’s, on average there was a major incident every year that caused a fatality, serious injury, or major damage. Since the ISO took effect in 1999, there have been a total of two major incidents in covered jurisdictions over a nearly 20-year period. The county continues to proactively seek enhancements, and it continues to serve as a guidepost for safety.”
District 4 Supervisor Karen Mitchoff, who was an intern in 1998, recalled negotiations were not by any means diplomatic between industry and government representatives. “Those were headbutting meetings,” she said. “Those meetings were not smoothly conducted.”
Since the enactment of ISO in 1999, the number of major chemical accidents has fallen from a high of 10 Major Chemical Accidents or Releases (MCARs) in 2001 to 1 incident each in 2017 and 2018. No MCARs were reported in 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, and 2016.
District 3 Supervisor Diane Burgis of Brentwood, who knows about the petroleum industry’s safety measures because she has a son who works in industry, commented, “I’m proud of Contra Costa County’s contributions to refinery safety.”
In a related consent action, supervisors approved a $700,000 contract with the consultant firm Baker and O’Brien, Inc. to provide refining industry analyses in connection with refinery property tax appeals for the period from Jan. 1, 2019 through Dec. 31, 2019. These appeals typically place several billion dollars of valuation in issue, said county counsel Sharon Anderson. “Assistance is required because valuations are highly technical, requiring specialized knowledge that only industry experts have,” said Anderson.
Supervisors Support Creation of Statewide Commission on Recycling Markets
On a consent action, supervisors called on Gov. Gavin Newsom to create a statewide commission on recycling markets citing the severity of environmental impacts triggered by China’s National Sword, that nation’s strict mixed paper and plastic contamination policy.
Upon noting that China has recently enacted strict mixed paper and plastic contamination limits and import bans, that are commonly called “National Sword,” China has declared its intent to ban all recyclable materials by 2020.
The board’s resolution states:
“Whereas, local governments across California will soon have to comply with additional state regulations for organic waste diversion and processing, SB 1383 (Chapters 395, 2016) establishes targets to achieve a 50 percent reduction in the level of the statewide disposal of organic waste from the 2014 level by 2020 and a 75 percent reduction by 2025. Infrastructure required to implement these regulations is expected to cost billions of dollars; and
“Whereas, these increased diversion requirements added to recent changes to international policies and a declining global market value for recyclables, has resulted in an issue of statewide concern for the resource recovery industry, local governments, and Californians;
“NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Count of Contra Costa calls for the Governor to establish a statewide Commission to address these significant challenges to our recycling markets.”
Nine Appointed to 2020 Census Complete Count Steering Committee
Supervisors appointed as a consent action nine persons to serve At-Large seats on the 2020 Census County Complete Count Steering Committee, a committee designed to set goals and objectives to identify community areas or a population group that might be difficult to count.
Appointed to the committee are Fran Biderman of Kensington, Alvaro Fuentes of Richmond, Samuel Houston of Concord, Melody Howe Weintraub of Lafayette, Terry Koehne of San Ramon, Mark Orcutt of Walnut Creek, Andres Orozco of Brentwood and Ali Saidi of Pinole.
District 3 Supervisors Diane Burgis of Brentwood chairs the committee.
Formation of the 2020 Census Complete county Steering Committee will aid the county is securing up to $362,605 in state aid to support the Complete Count campaign.
Victim/Witness Program Post Approved
District Attorney Diana Becton won supervisors’ consent approval to hire a full-time Victim/Witness Assistance Program Specialist in the Human Trafficking unit. The position will be responsible for advocacy and direct services for victims of human trafficking. The position’s salary will be $3,992 to $4,853 per month.
Approve $149,869 Payment to Bay Area Stormwater Management Agencies Association
Supervisors also approved the payment of $149,869 to the Bay Area Stormwater Management Agencies Association (BASMAA) for services provided to the Contra Costa Clean Water Program during the period July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018. Program funding is provided by the county and 19 cities and towns within Contra Costa County. Contra Costa County’s share is about $22,500.
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