Path to Clean Air for Richmond and San Pablo includes holding fuel industry accountable

What might drive a person to act on air pollution? Dr. Niyi Omotoso, an Oakland pediatrician has asked himself that question. One answer, he believes, is asthma.

Omotoso has treated many children with asthma, especially when he practiced in Richmond and San Pablo for 12 years. He saw how the disease disrupted the lives of the children and their families. A concerning UC San Francisco report confirms his experience: Around 25% of Richmond’s population suffers from asthma, almost double the state rate.

The main reason behind the high rates, Omotoso said, is air pollution, a regional problem that medical services alone cannot solve. To effect change, Omotoso joined a community steering committee that the Bay Area Air Quality Management District formed in 2021, and became one of its three leaders. 

“This was one of the opportunities I thought I could put my voice into as a physician and advocate for change,” he said.

Stricter enforcement

Following a 2017 California law to reduce air pollution “in communities affected by a high cumulative exposure burden,” the Air District created Path to Clean Air, a community emission reduction program for Richmond, North Richmond and San Pablo. On Nov. 7, California Air Regulation Board Executive Officer Steven Cliff officially approved the plan, which maps out a transition to renewable energy, while holding the fuel industry accountable for pollution. The plan calls for the Air District to more strictly enforce environmental laws and calls on Richmond and San Pablo to update their codes, so the governments and communities work cooperatively toward the same goal.

The strategies involve moving towards a “just transition” to a renewable energy economy and holding the fuel refining industry accountable. Other far-reaching strategies detailed in the plan include eliminating health disparities by expanding health care to low-income residents and supporting guaranteed income programs.

Unlike a government-led program, Path to Clean Air is a community-led endeavor to bring as many voices as possible to the table and come up with solutions to the air quality challenge the area faces. The 22-member steering committee includes residents, as well as representatives of city and county governments. BK White, policy director for the Richmond mayor’s office, and Hakim Johnson, senior public affairs representative at the Chevron Richmond refinery, are among the non-voting members.

 “This is the beginning, but we still need community support to help get the words out and also voice what we’re doing and what do you like to see,” Omotoso said.

Chevron is a priority

On Oct. 28, the steering committee passed the Year 1 Implementation Plan, which sets the program’s initial actions and goals to address air pollution caused by commercial and industrial activities, and transportation and fuel refining, among other areas, and the resulting health problems. 

The Chevron refinery is one of the priorities of the plan, which calls it the largest single polluter in the community for many air pollutants, including particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, manganese, and sulfuric acid.

The plan calls for “significantly increasing” penalties for repeat, serious, or continued violations that pose serious threats to health and public safety. One of the objectives calls for “removing profit and avoided costs gained from noncompliance.”

The committee plans to use public health data, such as bodily injuries and accidental deaths, to determine penalty amounts.

This would be a shift for the Air District, which has a pattern of letting pollution fines go unpaid for years as it works through cases and negotiates with companies. A Richmond Confidential analysis earlier this year found that over 90% of the Notices of Violation the district had issued in the prior 17 months were still pending. And more than half of the 4,500 violation notices issued in the previous five years were still unresolved.

Refinery accidents have been a major concern in the community. A fire at the refinery in 2012 caused nearly 15,000 people to seek medical treatment. In November 2023, a major flaring event sent smoke billowing across San Francisco Bay.

Chevron has promised to keep Richmond residents more informed about flaring and comply with regulatory requirements.

Councilmembers Claudia Jiménez and Gayle McLaughlin, among others, have publicly said that Richmond should be independent of fossil fuels. But while Chevron has harmed the environment and the community’s health, it also supports many community programs and, as the largest taxpayer and employer, has a significant impact on Richmond’s operating budget, leading to a complicated relationship with Richmond and San Pablo residents.

Regan Bradshaw, a Richmond resident, expressed that ambivalence when asked if the refinery should close. “It’s been there for many decades,” she said. “There are a lot of people in the larger Richmond area employed there. So if you are considering one thing without the other, it’s hard to say if it would be good or bad.”

Omotoso acknowledged this dilemma, and said it was also a problem the steering committee and the Air District are trying to tackle.

“We have to make sure we’re doing this the way that involves people in the community and in the industry, and come up with a way of doing it that doesn’t negatively impact the economic reality,” he said.

(Top photo of the Chevron Richmond refinery, by Bryan Wen)

---

Grant enables Park District to launch Point Molate plan, but Guidiville Rancheria see it as a land grab