West Berkeley Alliance

West Berkeley Alliance has its own website!

2006-01-17T22:31:00.000-08:00

The West Berkeley Alliance has its own website!

Please visit us at

http://westberkeleyalliance.org

email: WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com

telephone: 510.558.8757

We look forward to hearing from you!

2005-11-23T10:52:00.000-08:00

Berkeley Daily Planet
November 22, 2005

Pacific Steel Needs to Do More About Pollution
by Peter F. Guerrero

After 25 years of community pressure to stop polluting Berkeley, Albany, El Cerrito and Kensington neighborhoods, Pacific Steel Casting is finally planning to take steps to curb its levels of emissions. We appreciate the recent announcement that Pacific Steel will take additional steps to reduce toxic air pollution from its West Berkeley plant but more needs to be done.
A long-standing source of community complaints, Pacific Steel Casting is a remnant of Berkeley’s industrial past. Operating for over 74 years, Pacific Steel Casting is one of the last remaining steel foundries on the West Coast. When it was built, Berkeley’s Oceanview neighborhood was a manufacturing district but today the area is undergoing rapid change as old industrial buildings are converted to residential housing and artist studios. Despite these demographic changes, PSC operates today as if the environmental protection revolution of the 1970s never occurred, with one of its three casting facilities operating WITHOUT pollution abatement equipment. That it has been a source of irritation to its neighbors is understandable.

By its own admission, Pacific Steel releases some serious pollutants including manganese, nickel, formaldehyde, benzene, and phenol, chemicals that are both known and suspected carcinogens as well responsible for adverse neurological, respiratory, and reproductive health effects. Reducing or eliminating these emissions is a matter of extreme importance.

Until PSC’s recent announcement, the reduction of these toxic emissions awaited the results of a health risk assessment (HRA) required by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD). Citizens were dubious that the HRA would have much of an effect since risk assessment is historically associated with regulatory inaction. For example, in over three decades since the passage of a federal law to control the thousands of toxic chemicals manufactured in the U.S., only a handful have been regulated.

So, it made sense for PSC to take common-sense steps now to address the problem, among them:

• Improving general housekeeping, such as closing factory doors during production hours, and training employees in these procedures.

• Substituting less toxic chemicals for more toxic chemicals used in the manufacturing process.

• Re-engineering manufacturing processes to reduce waste and pollution.

• Installing pollution control equipment on parts of the plant not currently controlled.

• Making sure existing equipment is operating properly.

None of these are exotic or unreasonable steps in light of the high number of complaints about PSC. In fact, they are considered best management practices by industry because they not only result in better community relations, but also improve the bottom line by making operations more efficient and reducing the potential liabilities associated with worker and community exposure to toxic chemicals.

Let’s look at the specifics:

First, PSC is improving its housekeeping by closing doors on one of its facilities. While this is a step in the right direction, PSC should be required to close all of its doors while operating. Continuing to keep some doors open allows the wind to carry out pollutants before they can be captured by pollution control equipment.

Second, ventilation fans will be shut down after hours. While this will reduce the release of pollutants into the environment, it does not reduce the pollutants themselves. Eventually, they will be released if not controlled. Turning off fans only delays the release of the pollutants to the time when the fans are turned on.

Third, bringing additional fresh air into the facility also does little to solve the problem. In the 1970s environmentalists used to say “dilution is not the solution.” The solution is ending the pollution in the first place, period.

Fourth, training employees on these new housekeeping procedures is good. Employees also need to be held accountable for implementing them consistently.

Fifth, installing an “odor neutralizer” could be a good thing or it could be cosmetic. If it involves perfuming pollutants, then it should not be allowed. If it involves reducing pollutants, then that’s good. BAAQMD should make sure it’s the latter.

Sixth, testing alternative, less toxic chemicals to use in the manufacturing process is good. However, PSC shouldn’t give up due to initial disappointing results. It should continue to look at less toxic alternatives. “Green Chemistry” is a booming field; in fact, a recent Noble Prize went to three green chemists.

Finally, installing pollution control equipment on parts of the plant currently without them is long overdue and a significant step in the right direction. It is unclear, however, whether this equipment will only reduce odors or reduce particulate emissions as well. As anyone who lives in West Berkeley or the other affected communities knows, a grimy dust settles on everything left outside. Particulates are a culprit in asthma and other respiratory disorders. Efforts need to be undertaken to also reduce particulate emissions.

As its recent announcement indicates, PSC can be a better neighbor. After all, among its clients are you and I—the taxpayers of California—who are paying PSC to cast parts for the Bay Bridge retrofit. We deserve a good neighbor in exchange. PSC should continue working with BAAQMD to identify further steps it can take to ensure a cleaner and healthier environment.

Updates...PSC makes changes, complaints continue...

2005-11-06T11:44:00.000-08:00

Recent Article in the East Bay Daily News and how you can help.

2005-09-03T17:35:00.000-07:00

first published September 1, 2005 East Bay Daily News

Establishing the Ground Rules or Stacking the Deck?
By Fred Dodsworth
Daily News staff writer

Pacific Steel Casting Company’s hired consultants have submitted a set of protocols guiding the health risk assessment tests on emissions from the factory that the West Berkeley community has demanded, the community says the guidelines are skewed and incomplete.

“These were supposed to be the protocols, a very specific, very detailed document that tell us what is being tested and how it’s being tested,” said Toni Stein, an environmental engineer with a doctorate in air quality control who has been working with the neighborhood group known as the West Berkeley Alliance. “But the document’s details are vague and incomplete. They say they’ll give us specifics later but this is the document we’re supposed to make public comments on. It’s like they’re laughing at us. When will we have an opportunity for community input? This is very upsetting.”

Stein became involved in Pacific Steel Casting’s air quality problems when she served as one of four officers for the Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s hearing board in 1999 when the West Berkeley factory was facing an abatement order. The board ruled to lift the abatement order by three to one. Stein was the hearing officer opposed to lifting the abatement. She’s not the only person frustrated with how the process has evolved.

“There is a very real conflict of interest when the company that is doing the polluting hires the consulting firm,” said Andrew Galpern, a member of the neighborhood group complaining about the stench emanating from the factory.

Originally the Air Quality Management District was going to do the study but with ongoing budgetary shortfalls that option disappeared. Now Pacific Steel Casting has hired Environmental Resources Management to do a health risk assessment study for the district. Pacific Steel Casting was involved in the process of determining the protocols used to assess the health risks associated with its emissions.

“The Air Quality Management District promises to provide some oversight,” said Andrew Galpern, “but that is the exact same agency that has known about this problem for over 30 years and been ineffective at fixing it. No fines, no interruptions, nothing but paperwork. It makes you wonder what side the Air Quality Management District is on.”

Among the many complaints the neighborhood has are concerns about the base-standards the test agency will use. There are many homes and several youth-oriented facilities in the neighborhood, including schools and playing fields, but the studies will be based on adult males. Children breathe at a rate three times higher than an adult male, and would absorb commensurately more toxins and pollutants, said Stein.

No compensating factors are included for people with compromised health conditions, said Galpern.
Additionally the standards for topography used in the study are rural where the West Berkeley neighborhood hasn’t been rural in over a century, and the city of Berkeley has elevations that run from near zero feet above sea level to more than a thousand feet above sea level. The neighborhood group also wants the study to take into consideration that Berkeley’s weather changes seasonally, hourly and block-by-block. The volatile gases and heavy metals Pacific Steel Casting emits disburse very differently at different temperatures and humidities and under differing wind conditions.

The air around the factory will be tested for phenols used as a binding agent and burned out during the sand-casting process and during the sand recycling process. Additionally the surrounding air will be tested for arsenic, beryllium, cadmium, beryllium, chromium, mercury and numerous other toxic chemicals the factory is known to emit.

“We’ll take our cues on how to respond to this from the neighborhood,” said Brad Smith, aide to Council Woman Linda Maio, whose district surrounds Pacific Steel Casting. This is very technical material and we’re not qualified to make these kinds of determinations, he said. Maio was on vacation and is not expected to return until after the public comment period is over.

“Why is it that the burden is placed on the shoulders of ordinary citizens, who must somehow drop everything they are doing and become experts?” asked Galpern. “Something stinks, and it’s more than Pacific Steel.”

Citizens are encouraged to make public comments regarding the protocols which will be used to measure and ameliorate the potential health hazards and noxious odors emitted by Pacific Steel Casting Company.

The public comment period ends September 13. Comments should go to Mr. Scott Lutz, Bay Area Air Quality Management District, 939 Ellis St., SF, CA 94109 or via email to slutz@baaqmd.gov.
More information is available on the web at
http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/council1/psc.htm
and
http://WestBerkeleyAlliance.blogspot.com/

What can you do?

Let Brad Smith and Linda Maio know you are sick and tired of the hazardous pollution and odor nuisance and you want it fixed.
Let them know the study that Pacific Steel is planning is severely flawed, has significant gaps, and favors the company, rather than protecting workers and residents.

Let Scott Lutz know you expect the Air District to STAND UP FOR WORKERS AND RESIDENTS and stop sitting on their, and start demanding the changes be made in the HRA. Without all the changes we recommend, the study is flawed, incomplete, and the results will be misleading.

Some technical details:

1. The study is incomplete and still does not include every source of emissions at Pacific Steel. Entire processes are being excluded, for no apparent reason. (That's like checking your car for smog at the tailpipe, and ignoring that the engine is on fire!)

2. The model they use to describe how pollution disperses should include BOTH rural and urban air dispersal coefficients. (Last time I looked, West Berkeley was pretty darn urban!)

3. The breathing rates they are using to model exposure are for adult males, but their are kids nearby (within 2 blocks!) that use 3 times that amount of air. They should be using BOTH adult and kid breathing rates, and providing the public with the worst case scenario, so people can protect themselves.)

4. There is no mention of how Pacfic Steel will be testing long time workers and residents for exposure.
Why don't they plan on testing any people for exposure? (Because the answer could cost them a lot of money!) This issue is all about people and their health, and that should be the NUMBER ONE PRIORITY.

5. We should be VERY SKEPTICAL of the results when the COMPANY that is being investigated is PAYING for the CONSULTANTS.

The public comment period ends September 13. Comments should go to Mr. Scott Lutz, Bay Area Air Quality Management District, 939 Ellis St., SF, CA 94109 or via email to slutz@baaqmd.gov.

What will it take to make you angry enough to get involved?

email us anytime you have questions, comments, concerns, or are ready to take the next step.

WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com

Este es el documento que identifica a nuestra organizacion. (Identity Statement in Spanish and English)

2005-09-03T11:00:00.000-07:00

Este es el documento que identifica a nuestra organizacion. Dice quienes somos y por que nos hemos formado.

Alianza de West Berkeley para Aire Limpio y Empleos Seguros
West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs

La Alianza es una nueva organizacion de vecinos, negocios y varias organizaciones en Berkeley, Albany, El Cerrito y Kensington que tratan de preservar los empleos saludables en West Berkeley/ East Bay mientras se esfuerza para mantener limpio el aire.

aliado. s.1. Una persona, un grupo o un estado que se junta a otro u otros para la ayuda mutua o para lograr una meta comun.

La Responsabilidad Industrial: Creemos que las industrias locales forman una parte vital de nuestra economia regional y queremos mantener la produccion industrial y los empleos seguros en nuestra comunidad. Esperamos que la industria haga todo lo posible para no prejudicar la salud y la seguridad de la gente. La responsabilidad de esto esta en las manos de los gerentes y los duenos, y no debe ser unicamente la responsabilidad de los trabajadores y la gente de los barrios.

La responsabilidad de las Agencias: Siendo residentes, negocios y organizaciones localescreemos que nuestras agencias, establecidas para proteger a la comunidad de los abusos de nuestros recursos, han de realizar sus cargos de la manera mas responsable. Estamos aqui para asegurar que hagan todo lo posible para proteger a cada ciudadano, y que no se rindan a la presion economica, asi perjudicando la salud de la comunidad.

"Keep it in my Back Yard" (KIIMBY---Mantenganlo aqui, en casa) Creemos en el lema "KIIMBY"---mantener la industria local y los empleos aqui, en vez de en otro sitio. Nos oponemos a la relocacion de procesos industriales toxicos a otra region u otro pais, prejudicando asi el medio ambiente de otro lugar y resultando en la perdida de empleos aqui.

Proteger los Empleos y La Salud: Creemos que todos en la comunidad tienen derecho a la buena salud, un medio ambiente limpio, y un lugar de empleo saludable. No aceptamos la idea de que o podemos tener industrias y desarrollo o podemos tener un medio ambiente saludable. Queremos los dos!

Actividades Actuales: El enfoque primario de la Alianza es identificar y eliminar el humo toxico que sale de los procesos de Pacific Steel Casting Company, asegurando el derecho de cada ciudadano de saber que peligros quimicos hay en el aire y asegurando a la vez que el Comite del Bay Area de la calidad del aire cumpla con su mision de protegernos del aire nocivo y peligroso.

West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs

The Alliance is a newly forming network of neighbors; businesses; and environmental, social justice, and children’s organizations in Berkeley, Albany, El Cerrito, and Kensington allied to preserve safe jobs here in West Berkeley and the East Bay while preventing noxious pollution.

al·ly (e-li’) n. 1. a person, group, or state that is joined in an association with another or others for mutual help and support or for the achievement of a common purpose.

Industrial Responsibility
We believe that local industries are a vital part of our regional economy and want to keep industrial production and safe jobs in our community. We expect industry to act as good neighbors and do everything in their power to ensure that production processes do not negatively impact workers or residents. The burden of this responsibility should fall on the ownership and management of industry, not on workers, residents, or our common resources like air and water.

Agency Accountability
As local residents, businesses, and organizations we believe our government agencies, established to protect the community from abuses of our common resources, should perform their duty to the highest standard. We are committed to ensuring that they adequately respond to community concerns, proactively operate to protect the health and safety of residents and workers, and ethically refuse to bow to political and economic pressure against the interests of the greater community.

Community Organizing
We believe that community members, local business and agencies must work together to ensure that our public agencies and local industries perform their mission and act as good neighbors. Open community dialogue and sharing of information and resources are critical to our success.

“Keep It in My Back Yard” (KIIMBY)
We take a “Keep It In My Back Yard” approach to keep jobs local and the environmental and social responsibility for products we use close to home. We oppose the relocation of toxic industrial processes to another region or country, where other local communities will be impacted and good jobs will be lost in our community.

Protect Jobs and Health
We believe everyone in the community has the right to good health, a clean environment, and a safe workplace. We denounce the false dichotomy promoted by industry that we can either have jobs and economic development or we can have a safe and healthy environment. We demand all of these.

Current Activities
Our primary focus at the Alliance is identifying and eliminating the toxic and nuisance fugitive fumes from Pacific Steel Casting Company’s production processes, upholding the public’s (workers’ and community’s) Right-To-Know about chemical hazards they are exposed to, and ensuring the Bay Area Air Quality Management District fulfills its commitment to achieving clean air to protect the public’s health and the environment.

West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs
http://westberkeleyalliance.blogspot.com/
510.558.8757
WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com

Recent Alliance letter published in the Berkeley Daily Planet

2005-08-17T15:29:00.000-07:00

Commentary: West Berkeley Odors Mandate Comprehensive Tests By DAVID SCHROEDER
On behalf of the West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs, I would like to respond to Matthew Artz’s Aug. 5 article, “City, Pacific Steel Will Study Noxious West Berkeley Odor,” and to Tom McGuire’s Aug. 9 letter to the editor about Pacific Steel’s “daily emissions of toxic effluvia,” as Mr. McGuire eloquently puts it. The West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs builds on the more than 25-year history of community action regarding Pacific Steel Casting Company’s pollution. We are everyday people in Berkeley, Albany, El Cerrito and Kensington concerned about the quality of life, the impact on workers at Pacific Steel and other local businesses, the risk to children in nearby childcare centers and schools, the risks to pregnant women and their unborn, the risk to elders and those with compromised immune systems, and the danger to the environment.

We have had experiences with the acrid burning pot handle/burning brake odor very much like Mr. McGuire’s. Some of us had the means to move out of the area, while others had to close our doors and windows, trying to coexist with the odorous pollution. Some of us experience difficulty breathing, headaches, nausea, and throat/eye irritation when we are exposed to Pacific Steel’s emissions. Some of us suffer from asthma, other respiratory illnesses and cancer.

We believe that Pacific Steel Castings and other local industries must take full responsibility for their production, keeping the air clean and jobs safe. We denounce the false dichotomy advocated by industry that we can either have job creation and economic development or we can have a safe environment. We can have both, and the financial and technical burden of this responsibility should fall to the owners and managers of industry, not to the workers, neighbors, or tax payers. We take a Keep It In My Back Yard (KIIMBY) approach, advocating for industry to be responsible employers and good neighbors. We want the facilities to stay here and clean up, keeping decent jobs local and preventing dirty industries from running away to pollute elsewhere.

Although we were able to address the problem well over 15 years ago when the Bay Area Air Quality Management District Hearing Board (at our behest) forced Pacific Steel to mitigate emissions from plants 1 and 2 (but not plant 3) with pollution control equipment, fugitive emissions continued to escape. Pacific Steel’s production has increased, and the odor is as bad as ever. Over the odor’s decades-long history, authorities have responded with too little, too late.

We have been imploring the Air District, the City of Berkeley, and Pacific Steel to undertake a comprehensive and well-conducted Health Risk Assessment (HRA). When the Air District decided (after receiving many community odor complaints) that the HRA had to be done by Pacific Steel, the Alliance pushed the Air District and the City to improve the HRA protocols and plan. It is a perversion of our public regulatory agencies’ responsibilities to have a known violator hire its own consultants to study its own emissions. This is the job of our public regulators and the scientists we pay with public money. They should be protecting us, but are not.

Initially, there was to be no public input in the HRA process, and data in the health risk assessment was to include 1989 statistics. However, the West Berkeley Alliance has urged the city to intervene, providing public review and requiring testing of all sources of emissions. The city has apparently been successful in getting these interventions inserted into the process, and has received assurances form Pacific Steel that they will fund additional studies not required by the Air District. Unfortunately, the Air District and the city have not solved the problem in the past and thus far have not been extremely forthcoming with initiative and information. This leaves many people in the alliance wondering if the public will ever have full access to all of the information and decision-making in the HRA process, and in the overall resolution of this problem.

Therefore, the West Berkeley Alliance is conducting its own testing. Community members, without government or industry assistance, have been trained to use state-of-the-art air sampling devices to gather data. This testing is laborious and expensive, but provides results independent of the Air District and Pacific Steel’s consultants.

We are still hopeful that the City of Berkeley, Bay Area Air Quality Management District, and Pacific Steel Casting Company will step up and protect the health of workers and residents. The West Berkeley Alliance encourages the city to initiate a comprehensive neighborhood health survey, conducted by the county and state departments of health, with community oversight. The alliance urges the Air District to follow its regulations, to thoroughly and continuously enforce permit to operate conditions, and to constantly monitor all of Pacific Steel’s sources of emissions until the pollution problem is mitigated. We believe that on behalf of workers, the Glass, Molders, Pottery, Plastics, and Allied Workers International Local 164-B should demand that OSHA conduct a longitudinal health study of the workers’ long term and chronic health issues. Lastly, we hope Pacific Steel will protect its workers and the community by installing necessary pollution controls to eliminate all toxic and nuisance emissions.

To reach our goals, we are educating the public about the Bay Area Air Quality Management District and how to call in odor nuisance complaints to the Air District. Any time (24 hours a day) anyone experiences an odor nuisance in the Bay Area they should call 1-800-334-6367 and make a complaint.

We haven’t exhausted our ideas for cleaning the air and preserving safe and healthy jobs, and we are always open to public input and new members. We invite Mr. McGuire, and everyone else impacted, to join the West Berkeley Alliance: 558-8757, or westberkeleyalliance@yahoo.com. Or go to our website: http://westberkeleyalliance.blogspot.com for ongoing updates.

David Schroeder is a member of the West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs.

Re: The meeting with Linda Maio

2005-08-17T15:27:00.000-07:00

(email to Alliance members)

Hi,

It was great to see so many of you at the meeting last week with Linda
Maio. We saturated the audience and were knowledgeable and organized.
I think we made a strong impression on Linda, Brad (her assistant), and
Nabil (the city toxics manager), and the other audience members.

Our message is clear: We are concerned about the odor nuisance and the health risks to PSC workers, local businesses, children, pregnant women as well as other community members. These particulates and odorous emissions are a health hazard.

Our plan continues to be putting pressure on the city to stay in the loop,
and to educate the public about the nuisance and health impacts of Pacific
Steel, and to call in complaints when the air stinks, as well as to continue
to research our legal and legislative options.

Your involvement continues to be crucial.

Calling in complaints (and teaching others about the process) is essential because the Air District will not pursue PSC and the odor nuisance if
called complaints diminish.

In THEIR minds...NO complaints means there is NO problem.

We need to continue to reach out to more people...workers, church's, and community leaders.. with our clear message:

We want Pacific Steel to be a completely safe place to work, and we want the neighborhood free of hazardous emissions and odors.

We are several hundred strong now, but have not yet reached critical mass. Who could you contact today...a family member, a friend, a business acquaintance? You probably know someone who could help.

If you want to work in a particular area...media, science, legal, outreach
or can donate any time our money, please let us know. We are organizing
those groups during the next two tweeks and will keep you posted.

This is a critical time because plans are being made by PSC, the air
district, and the city for the upcoming studies, samples, and reporting.

We want to have a say in the entire process. Our voices are being heard, but
we need to get even louder.

Last night's meeting reminded many of us how important independent testing
will be. The Alliance has begun independent testing, and that's going to take money.

Basic tests cost around $100 each. More sophisticated tests are $500 and up.
And we will need a couple dozen tests to gather a strong body of evidence
to make our case.

Please talk to your neighbors, co-workers, boss, and neighborhood associations, and consider donating for one test. The Alliance will help you coordinate and share this important data. Together, it will make a difference.

Please do whatever you can to help. Volunteer anyway you want. Work with
others or independently and reach out to neighbors and friends...and please
let us know what you are doing and what you think of the process so far.

Is there something you think we should be doing? Let us know!

Is there something you want your elected officials to do? Let them know!

Want to send Pacific Steel an email or give them a call to tell them we
want to work with them to protect the workers and clean the air for
everyone?

1333 Second Street, Berkeley, California 94710
Telephone: 510.525.9200 Fax: 510.524.4673
http://www.pacificsteel.com/

Chris Chan (Pacific Steel's environmental engineer)
Her email and number is cchan@pacificsteel.com (510) 558-2256

How about Mayor Tom Bates or one of the city council members?

Berkeley City Council and Mayor
http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/Elected/default.htm

Berkeley City Council Member Linda Maio
http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/council1/

Linda Maio's Pacific Steel Page
http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/council1/psc.htm

Albany's Mayor and City Council
http://www.albanyca.org/gov/city_council.html

California State Government...with links on the left
to health and safety and the environment and natural resources
http://www.statelocalgov.net/state-ca.htm

Want to check out the consulting firm Pacific Steel is hiring to do the
study?

http://www.erm.com

Want to check out the PR/consulting firm Pacific Steel hired to protect
them...You might be surprised at who is working for them...

http://www.ajepartners.com/

This is former State Assembly member and former Chief of Staff to Mayor Tom
Bates, Dion Aroner's company! (doesn't it make you wonder about which way
the wind blows and what really stinks?)

Good luck, stay in touch, and do good work.

ag, gk

p.s. Do you want to start meeting regularly in your own groups...for an hour every other week? Let me know what days and times work best for you and I will try to set a time that is convenient for as many as possible.

____________________________________________________

West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs
http://westberkeleyalliance.blogspot.com/
510.558.8757
WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com

We are a community organization open to anyone who is concerned about clean
air and safe jobs in West Berkeley. Please contact us today for more
information!

THIS WEEK! Community meeting Wed., Aug. 10th, 7pm

2005-08-07T15:28:00.000-07:00

Berkeley City Councilmember Linda Maio is holding a community meeting

Wednesday, August 10th, 7pm
James Kenney Recreation Center
1720 Eighth Street

What questions do YOU want answered...

What exactly causes the odor in this neighborhood?

Why is the public being EXCLUDED from most of the Health Risk Assessment protocol process? Will our recommendations be put into action?

What plans does the City have to test the air? Test the factory emissions?
Survey residents and workers about health issues, etc.?

What is the City doing to protect workers and residents (and why has it taken so long)?

What are the dangers and health risks associated with the air in impacted neighborhoods?

How will they make sure the public is allowed sufficient input into all of the processes dealing with the odor and health risks?

Why is there so little public information?

Why is it so hard to file an air quality complaint and get it confirmed?

Bring your questions and demand answers!

In fact, if you EMAIL me your questions to WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com, I will put them all together and present them to Linda Maio!

The Alliance will also be holding a short 15-minute meeting IMMEDIATELY AFTEWARDS.
Everyone is welcome.

All the documents you want...UPDATED

2005-08-03T09:57:00.000-07:00

If you want us to send you any of the documents below, just send us anemail WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com with your specific request.

Alliance Identity Statement
Alliance List of Requests
Health Effects of Toxins released by Pacific Steel
How to Make an Air Quality Complaint
History of the PSC Issue
Alliance Brochure
Letter to Alliance Members
List of nearby organizations negatively affected by Pacific Steel
Picture of Pacific Steel from the air!

If you read only one thing...READ THIS

2005-08-03T08:41:00.001-07:00

Chronology of Pacific Steel Casting, Bay Area Air Quality Management District, and Neighbors for Clean Air History
1980 - 2005

By the Neighbors’ Historical Research Team

Pacific Steel Casting Company (PSC) and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) have been at odds with neighbors for years. This is partially because of PSC’s uncooperativeness and foul emissions, and partly because of BAAQMD’s impenetrable bureaucracy and nearly unusable complaints policy.
Neighbors have long known that PSC’s burning pot handle/burning brake odor is attributed to the known carcinogens Phenol and Formaldehyde, as well as various hydrocarbons, heavy metals, particulates, and other potentially dangerous substances. Although they have complained and organized to have the emissions filtered out of the air, the odors are a recurring nightmare for residents in El Cerrito, Albany, Berkeley, and Kensington for the past 25 or more years. Neighbors won some partial victories in the early 1990s forcing PSC to install some equipment to clean up the air, however the issues were not fully addressed and the odor nuisance continues.
When they made complaints to BAAQMD, the neighbors were confronted with bureaucratic sluggishness, inspectors discouraging them from complaining about PSC, red tape, and policies overwhelmingly favoring industry. The complaints policy is a case in point. To make a complaint, residents must first discover what agency to call about the stink. After inquiring at federal, state, and local government institutions, perusing the phone book, and searching the Internet, they may learn about BAAQMD. Then they must call the complaint number (1-800-334-6367) and describe the specific odor they smell.
If the complaint is made between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., an inspector may come to their homes/workplaces to try to confirm the smell. This can take 30 minutes to one hour or more depending on where the inspector is at the time the complaint is phoned in. The complainant must be present when the inspector arrives. They must still smell the odor when the inspector arrives and tries to sniff out the smell. If both complainant and inspector are able to smell the odor, the inspector confirms the complaint by linking the odor to its precise source in a specific process in a certain industrial plant. Five different households, or five people at a workplace, must have their complaints confirmed by an inspector within a 24-hour period before a notice of violation can be issued to the offending company.
PSC’s emissions move in the ambient air. Depending upon the wind direction, the odor can be smelled intermittently. The odor may drift elsewhere before an inspector shows up. If the complaint is called in after regular work hours at BAAQMD, it is recorded and registered the next day. No confirmation can be made at that time. If ten people call in, an inspector could be dispatched after hours, and confirmed complaints could be filed.
A lawyer for PSC said that neighbors were concerned with the odor and the effect it might have on the value of their homes. Neighbors contend they are variously concerned about quality of life, the impact on local businesses and jobs (including those of PSC workers), the risk to children in nearby childcare centers and schools, pregnant women’s (and their babies’) safety, the health of elders and environmentally susceptible community members, and danger to the environment. A Berkeley activist called for publicly accessible, independent, comprehensive testing for health and environment effects of all of PSC’s emissions (odorous and odorless). In the following account, culled primarily from oral histories and years worth of clippings from periodicals, we chronicle strong resistance by PSC and BAAQMD to a comprehensive, transparent and responsive air analysis and cleanup process.
Chronology: PSC, BAAQMD & NCA ~ 1980 – 2005

1934 Pacific Steel Casting Company (PSC) was founded in West Berkeley. The company makes technology for pumps and valves, oil fields, construction equipment, trucks, military, industrial, and mining applications.

1975 Neighbors began to reflect on the smell from PSC’s new foundry processes.

1980 Robert Humphreys, City of Berkeley zoning officer, determined an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) would not be required for the construction of PSC’s third plant. This was because PSC had assured him that the new operation would produce “no increase in odors.”

1981 Berkeley neighbors began to organize around a burning pot handle/burning brake smell that emanated from PSC in West Berkeley. Neighbors learned to call the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) to make complaints about the odor nuisance from PSC.

PSC received notices of violation from BAAQMD for creating an odor nuisance due to many confirmed complaints from residents of Berkeley.

The grassroots neighborhood organization Neighbors for Clean Air (NCA) was formed. NCA approached BAAQMD, the Berkeley City Council, the State Department of Health, and the City Board of Adjustments to deal with the issues of odor nuisance and possible health risks from emissions at PSC.

Hearings were held at different agencies but, due to postponements and cancellations of nine hearing dates, no definite action took place.

1982 Due to continued citizen complaints, BAAQMD scheduled a test to determine the source of PSC’s emissions.

PSC was issued numerous notices of violation from BAAQMD for odor nuisance.

The Berkeley City Council and the Board of Adjustments held public hearings regarding PSC odors, but deferred to BAAQMD.

After receiving 107 confirmed complaints, the BAAQMD air pollution control officer filed for a public hearing before the BAAQMD hearing board (the judicial branch of the air district).

District inspectors and consultants gave expert testimony, and residents testified about PSC’s odor nuisance. Throughout the hearing, PSC denied it was responsible for the odor.

The BAAQMD hearing board issued a conditional order of abatement against Pacific Steel Casting Company, listing steps PSC must take to end the pollution. PSC was to return to the board a month later with very specific plans and a schedule for ending the release of its emissions.

1983 In January, PSC hired a $500 per day expert on foundries, Richard Duffee, to address the odor problem. He advised the erection of an 85-foot stack on plant two, and ducts in parts of plant two and three to solve the odor nuisance. The noxious odor then spread as far as Grizzly Peak in the Berkeley Hills.

In response to PSC’s prolonged foot-dragging, the hearing board prepared an unconditional order of abatement, the most serious type of order.

PSC’s lawyer from Joseph Alioto’s law firm immediately filed a petition in Superior Court to have the order of abatement overturned. This attempt failed.

PSC was compelled to install an extensive ventilation system as well as scrubbers. PSC’s hired expert then advised adding a condenser.

1984 Thus far, PSC had been fined $40000 and been forced to pay none of it. The odor returned to Berkeley, Albany, Kensington and El Cerrito neighborhoods. More confirmed complaints were tallied against PSC. More hearings were held. PSC was ordered to install a carbon filtration system within eight months.

After still more hearings, in December, the BAAQMD hearing board issued an unconditional order of abatement, which stated that PSC must cease and desist emitting odors from its plants or face fines and possible closure.

1985 The unconditional order of abatement went into effect in January. BAAQMD took PSC to Alameda County Superior Court to force the industry to adhere to its unconditional order of abatement and stop polluting the air.

1990 There were 630 complaints made against PSC in this year alone.

1991 There were 142 complaints against PSC.

1998 Meanwhile, PSC received two loans and bought and installed a Calcifire Thermal Sand Reclamation System to reuse the 5,500 tons of sand PSC uses in its casting process. Some observers called it an incinerator. No environmental impact report (EIR) process was conducted before the installation and no notice for public review was given, violating the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

PSC (and the city of Berkeley) received an award from the California Association for Local Economic Development – announced in time for Earth Day – for installing the sand reclamation system.

1999 Between 1994 and 1999, the public had made 190 complaints, 27 of which were confirmed complaints. No notices of violation were issued. By the nineties, the bureaucratic complaint policies of BAAQMD had thoroughly frustrated longtime residents who had routinely called in complaints. Many stopped complaining by 1999. Many had moved out of the area.

Residents new to the community did not know the source of the distinctive odor or whom to call about the smell. BAAQMD still had not effectively publicized the phone number for complaints. Some BAAQMD inspectors continued to discourage residents who tried to complain about or organize against PSC emissions.

PSC requested that BAAQMD lift the unconditional order of abatement against it that had been in effect for fourteen years.

2000 In March a BAAQMD hearing was held to decide whether to lift the unconditional abatement order against Pacific Steel Casting Company. Public notice was only given via the Oakland Tribune.

Residents who attended the hearing voiced concerns about the odor nuisance as well as public health and the environmental risks of the sand-recycling unit. They were told the hearing board could only deal with the public nuisance issue (odor complaints).

The hearing board took citizens’ concerns into account. The board slammed the district’s complaint policies as well as the district’s method of determining a violation. Because such policy concerns are outside its jurisdiction, the hearing board was powerless to change BAAQMD policy. It was not powerless with regard to the abatement order.

Only one member of the hearing board wrote a dissenting opinion against lifting the unconditional order of abatement. The order, which required that PSC cease and desist emission of its odor nuisance or face fines and possible closure, was lifted.

2001 There were 18 complaints made to BAAQMD against PSC.

2003 There were 49 complaints made.

2004 There were 112 complaints made.

2005 In April, seven odor complaints confirmed by a district inspector resulted in a notice of violation against PSC. BAAQMD transferred its inspector to a different beat. Pacific Steel Casting Company had topped the air district’s complaint list in Berkeley every year since 2000. After the past 25 years of neighbor complaints, the emissions from the third unit at PSC were still unfiltered and about half of the emissions from the second unit were unfiltered. PSC’s environmental engineer said PSC would not act until BAAQMD found the source of the odor.

Also in April, Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates and City Councilmember Linda Maio’s aide held a town hall meeting. Over 70 people attended. The main topic was the continued community concern about PSC.
Sources

Albert, Marc. “Activist Demands Scrutiny of Foundry.” The Berkeley Voice, May 27, 1999.
Artz, Matthew. “Pacific Steel Cited for Noxious Odor After Neighbors Complain.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, April 1-4, 2005.
Artz, Matthew. “West Berkeley Meeting Addresses Pacific Steel Odor.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, April 19-21, 2005.
Buel, Stephen. “Steelcasting [sic] Firm Notified of Foul Odor.” The Berkeley Gazette, December 4, 1981.
Buel, Stephen. “Foundry Says it’s Cleaned up its Act.” The Berkeley Gazette, January, 1982.
Buel, Stephen. “Big Stink About Foundry Leads to Permit Hearing.” The Berkeley Gazette, February 11, 1982.
Burress, Charles. “Berkeley Factory Battle.” The San Francisco Examiner, November 28, 1982.
Burress, Charles. “Steel Plant is Ordered to Eliminate ‘Burning Pot Handle’ Odors.” The San Francisco Examiner, August 26, 1983.
Contini, Nora. “Workers and Neighbors.” Grassroots, February 24-March 9, 1982.
Contini, Nora. “West Berkeley Odor Hearing.” Grassroots, May, 1982.
Davis, Gerald. “Berkeley Foundry Ordered to Clean Up Act.” The Oakland Tribune, August 25, 1983.
Diringer, Elliot. “Berkeley Foundry Told to Stop Fumes.” The San Francisco Chronicle, December 31, 1984.
Ewell, Miranda. “Cry Foul.” The Montclarion, December 1, 1982.
Fu, Christine. “City Council Calls for Inquiry Into Local Steel Plant’s Emissions.” The Daily Californian, September 16, 1999.
Ginsburg, Marsha. “Residents Fume Over Foundry Odors.” The San Francisco Examiner, October 5, 1984.
Hawkridge, John. “Noxious Odors.” [Letter to the editor]. The Berkeley Daily Planet, April 30-May 3, 2004.
Hawley, Robert. [Letter to the editor]. The Berkeley Gazette, December 3, 1982.
Holloway, Peter. “Bad Air in Berkeley?” The Berkeley Council of Neighborhood Associations, March, 1982.
Holloway, Peter J. [Letter to the editor]. The Berkeley Gazette, December, 1982.
Hughes, Charles V. [Letter to the editor]. The Berkeley Gazette, December, 1982.
Jones, Will. “Court Requested to Order Foundry to Stop Nasty Odor.” The Oakland Tribune, March 12, 1985.
MacClarin, Wanda. “Clean Air Group Objects to Odor from Foundry.” The Oakland Tribune, February 11, 1982.
Manning, Stephanie. [Letter to the editor]. The Berkeley Gazette, December, 1982.
Matthews, Karen. “Pacific Steel Must Clean Up Plant Odors.” The Berkeley Gazette, August 25, 1983.
Matthews, Karen. “Tentative Truce On Odors.” The Berkeley Gazette, August 27, 1983.
McGrath, Mike. “Foundry Still Stinks, Residents Tell Council.” The Berkeley Gazette, November 26, 1982.
Nakashima, Ellen. “Hearings Begin Over Foul West Berkeley Odor.” The Daily Californian, October 3, 1984.
Nakashima, Ellen. “West Berkeley Odor May Be Eliminated.” The Daily Californian, November 30, 1984.
Nakashima, Ellen. “Factory Must Stop Odors, Board Tells Berkeley Plant.” [Unknown Publication], December 19, 1984.
O’Toole, Kathy. “Berkeley Foundry Told to Stop Odor.” The Oakland Tribune, December 19, 1984.
Ross, Andrew. “Plant Has Fresh Plan to End Its Foul Fumes.” The San Francisco Examiner, November 28, 1984.
Scherr, Judith. “Neighbors Raise Stink Over Odors.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, June 13, 1999.
Scherr, Judith. “Odor Debate Lingers.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, July 13, 1999.
Scherr Judith. “Pacific Steel Casting Remains Under Scrutiny.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, September 21, 1999.
Scherr, Judith. “Emissions Debate Nears End.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, September 23, 1999.
Scherr, Judith. “Pacific Steel Castings [title partially destroyed].” The Berkeley Daily Planet, November 3, 1999.
Scherr, Judith. “Air Quality Board Considers Pacific Steel Castings’ Case.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, January 5, 2000.
Scherr, Judith. “Foundry Continues to Concern Neighbors.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, March 17, 2000.
Scherr, Judith. “Odorous Order: Air Quality Board Places New Conditions On Foundry.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, January 10, 2000.
Schroeder, Janice. “Neighbors Say Stop Stink” [letter to the editor]. Grassroots, January 12-25, 1983.
Schroeder, Janice. “Response to Steel Firm’s Suit” [letter to the editor]. The Berkeley Gazette, March 24, 1983.
Schroeder, Janice. “Do Not Pass Go” [letter to the editor]. The East Bay Express, July 8, 1983.
Schroeder, Janice. “Oceanview Neighbors Win Big: Pacific Steel Ordered to Clean Up Their Act” [letter to the editor]. Grassroots, September 14-27, 1983.
Schroeder, Janice. “Air of Victory” [letter to the editor]. The East Bay Express, September 16, 1983.
Steel Founders’ Society of America. “Steel Foundry Detailed Information: Pacific Steel Casting Company.” 1995-2005. http//:www.sfsa.org/dir/lookup.php3?clink=269
Thompson, Chris. “West Berkeley Development Woes.” The East Bay Express, May 7, 1999.
Toczynski, Terry. “Factory Smell Annoys W. Berkeley Residents.” The Daily Californian, February 10, 1982.
Ture, Martha E. “The Pollution Game” The East Bay Express, Vol. 5, No. 35, June 24, 1983.
Ture, Martha E. “The Environment 1984.” The East Bay Express, December 21, 1984.
. “Pacific Steel Sues to Block Clean-Up Order.” The Berkeley Gazette, March 11, 1983.
[Unknown Title]. The Berkeley Voice, August 31, 1983.
. “Pollution In N.W. Berkeley Protested.” Grassroots, October 10, 1984.
. “Carcinogens In NW Berk Air.” Ecology Newsletter, November, 1984.
. “David vs. Goliath: Air Pollution Battle in Berkeley.” The Sierra Club Yodeler, December, 1984.
. “New Order to Stop West Berkeley Stink.” Grassroots, January 9, 1985.
. “Consultants – the New Anti-Labor Goons.” Grassroots, January 24, 1985.
. “Berkeley Business Briefs.” The Berkeley Voice, May 7, 1998.
Wood, LA. “Shut Down Incinerator.” The Berkeley Voice, June 10, 1999.
Wood, LA. “Air Quality Battle in Oceanview.” The Berkeley Voice, September 9, 1999.
Wood, LA. “Berkeley’s Odious Burnt Pot Handle Smell.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, March 28-31, 2005.
Wood, LA. “Berkeley’s Insidious Incinerator.” The Berkeley Daily Planet, April 19-21, 2005.

West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs
(Mission and Identity Statement)

The Alliance is a newly forming network of neighbors; businesses; and environmental, social justice, and children’s organizations in Berkeley, Albany, El Cerrito, and Kensington allied to preserve safe jobs here in West Berkeley and the East Bay while preventing noxious pollution.

al·ly (e-li’) n. 1. a person, group, or state that is joined in an association with another or others for mutual help and support or for the achievement of a common purpose.

Industrial Responsibility
We believe that local industries are a vital part of our regional economy and want to keep industrial production and safe jobs in our community. We expect industry to act as good neighbors and do everything in their power to ensure that production processes do not negatively impact workers or residents. The burden of this responsibility should fall on the ownership and management of industry, not on workers, residents, or our common resources like air and water.

Agency Accountability
As local residents, businesses, and organizations we believe our government agencies, established to protect the community from abuses of our common resources, should perform their duty to the highest standard. We are committed to ensuring that they adequately respond to community concerns, proactively operate to protect the health and safety of residents and workers, and ethically refuse to bow to political and economic pressure against the interests of the greater community.

Community Organizing
We believe that community members, local business and agencies must work together to ensure that our public agencies and local industries perform their mission and act as good neighbors. Open community dialogue and sharing of information and resources are critical to our success.

“Keep It in My Back Yard” (KIIMBY)
We take a “Keep It In My Back Yard” approach to keep jobs local and the environmental and social responsibility for products we use close to home. We oppose the relocation of toxic industrial processes to another region or country, where other local communities will be impacted and good jobs will be lost in our community.

Protect Jobs and Health
We believe everyone in the community has the right to good health, a clean environment, and a safe workplace. We denounce the false dichotomy promoted by industry that we can either have jobs and economic development or we can have a safe and healthy environment. We demand all of these.

Current Activities
Our primary focus at the Alliance is identifying and eliminating the toxic and nuisance fugitive fumes from Pacific Steel Casting Company’s production processes, upholding the public’s (workers’ and community’s) Right-To-Know about chemical hazards they are exposed to, and ensuring the Bay Area Air Quality Management District fulfills its commitment to achieving clean air to protect the public’s health and the environment.

Send us your complaints...COMMUNITY REPORTED DATA

2005-08-03T07:45:00.000-07:00

This post will include your reports of odors and pollution coming from Pacific Steel.
This is only a PARTIAL list.There have been HUNDREDS of complaints attributed to PSC within the past 12 months...Lets keep the pressure on!

Email your reports/complaints to WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com

Date Time Complaint (ID) Address/neighborhood Notes

8.17.05 10pm Complaint called in (K) Harrison and Kains
8.17.05 4pm Complaint called in (P) Ward and San Pablo
8.12.05 8am Confirmed complaint (K)
8.4.05 12:30 Complaint called in (A) 4th and Camelia
8.2.05 2pm Complaint called in (A) Camelia
8.2.05 2pm Confirmed complaint (A) 6th and Camelia
8.2.05 2pm Confirmed complaint (P) 6th and Camelia
8.2.05 10am Complaint called in (D) 4th and Camelia
7.11.05 11am Complaint called in (K) Harrison and Kains

Please call 1.800.334.6367 EVERY TIME you are bothered by the smell....and ask for an inspector to confirm the complaint.

Re: our community meeting on July 28th

2005-08-02T21:18:00.000-07:00

Re: our community meeting on July 28th

Dear neighbor,

The West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs held a community meeting last week and we want to let you know how it went and what some possible next steps are. A summary of the meeting and next steps can be found below. Attached are handouts with much more detailed information.

Please contact us anytime you have a question. We like to hear from you, and we would love to have you involved! Anyone interested in improving the air quality in West Berkeley is welcome. We are committed to clean air and safe jobs.

WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com
510.558.8757
http://westberkeleyalliance.blogspot.com/

NEWS FLASH....
Berkeley City Council member Linda Maio will be holding a community meeting at 7:00 PM on
Wednesday August 10 at the James Kenney Recreation Center. THIS WILL BE A VERY IMPORTANT MEETING. PLEASE ATTEND AND VOICE YOUR CONCERNS!
________________________________________________

Summary of the community meeting on July 28th

The meeting was well attended by approximately 50 people. There were several short presentations and a long comment/question and answer period at the end.The meeting lasted approximately 2 hours and several people stayed later to help clean up and to talk.Throughout the meeting, people expressed their concerns about the odor nuisance and the health effects of exposure to the toxins released by the factory, and described some of the health problems experienced by those in their family, friends, and neighbors. There was a lot of discussion about possible next steps and approaches to getting the Pacific Steel to clean up and keep workers and residents safe.

These were the different parts of the meeting.

1.
A brief introduction to the Ecology Center and the work being done there. The Ecology Center is an incredible resource for information about a wide range of topics dealing with the environment, recycling, social justice, green living, politics, media, and improving the general health of humans and the planet. They have very nice and knowledgeable people there...you should visit them sometime soon.
(Thank you Ecology Center for allowing us to meet there)
http://www.ecologycenter.org/

2.
An introduction and welcome to the West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs. A brief history of this pollution problem and how the alliance started. (Several hundred people are now involved, but we need more to really make a difference!)

3.
An overview of the current situation, the agencies involved, notices of violation (NOV) and some of the hard science behind the dangerous emissions.

4.
An overview of the complaint process, with hints and tips for when to call, how confirmed complaints work, what the air inspectors do, and how you can get involved easily by calling
1.800.334.6367 EVERYTIME you are bothered by the odor.
Calling in a complaint is the single most important thing you can do...
it takes 5 minutes (longer if you want to meet with an inspector to make it a CONFIRMED complaint...which is more meaningful as we build our case against Pacific Steel.)

5.
Denny Larson, a very well known and experienced environmental activist described the air sampling/testing that individuals and communities can do to find out for themselves what's in the air and how it affects your health. He and his organization were incredibly generous and donated $500 worth of testing to our organization as a fundraiser. (Thank you Denny and Global Community Monitor)
Denny Larson
Director
Global Community Monitor
www.gcmonitor.org
project of the Tides Center
222 Richland Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94110
USA
Office +1 415 643 1870
www.sipcotcuddalore.com
www.shellfacts.com
www.bucketbrigade.net
www.refineryreform.org

6.
How to get involved...there are so many ways. No matter who you are, are what your situation is, we can definitely use your help!
1....2....5 minutes of Activism.
Call, email, or go talk to someone you know, who might be interested in this problem...it could be a neighbor, friend, co-worker, or acquaintance.
Get involved in any aspect of this issue that interests you. ..we need help in the following areas.
Calling in complaints
Outreach, education, flyers, neighborhood walks, word of mouth...
Letter writing to business, government, media, air district, Pacific Steel.
Donations of your time, resources and money.
Technology assistance (data entry, graphic design, web/blog maintenance)
Researching Legal issues (court cases, injunctions, fines, damages)
Researching Science issues (testing/sampling, analysis, toxicity, health surveys)
Public Policy Research (protocols, public input, legislation, rules, procedures)

The most important thing is TO DO SOMETHING, and stay in touch with us.
And please remember...we may disagree about a few things, but we can all agree that we want clean air AND safe jobs.

Here are just a few ideas....or try one of your own!

If you only have 1 minute, forward this email with a short note from you to someone who might be interested, and ask them what they think.

If you have 5 minutes, and can smell the odor call in a complaint!
(If you call during the day, and have 30 minutes, you can make it a confirmed complaint by meeting with an inspector....extra triple bonus points for CONFIRMED complaints)

If you have 10 minutes, go talk to your neighbor and find out if they can smell it too. Show them how easy it is to call in a complaint.
1.800.334.6367 (ODOR)

If you have 10 minues, call the mayors office and complain about not keeping their promise about keeping the public informed, the problems with the current testing plans (more on this later this week), the lack of independent testing, the planned use of OLD DATA FROM 1989!, the inherent conflict of interest in having Pacific Steel hire the testing/consulting company, etc. The more you dig into this issue...the dirtier it gets!

If you have 15 minutes contact your favorite business, church, organization in the area, and let them know what's going on, how it might be affecting them, and what they can do about it. There are day care centers, business offices.

If you have 30 minutes during the day and can smell it, call in a complaint and get it confirmed by meeting with an inspector (They will drive to your home or work.)

If you have an hour, bring 3 neighbors and go visit the factory (at 2nd St. and Camelia, and at 2nd and Gilman St.) and you can EACH call in a complaint at the same time!

If you have an hour and work near the factory, have a meeting to discuss the problem, teach people how to complain, and make plans to do something as a group to get Pacific Steel to clean up.

Maybe you have your own idea.....These are some of the ideas we heard at the meeting...

One resident wants to plan a march to the factory, and invite her friends and neighbors to carry signs!

Another resident had a family member they were going to contact who was an environmental lawyer with experience in legal action against companies.

Another resident (me!) suggested meeting friends for lunch near 6th and Camelia (Picante), and calling in a complaint if the odor is present!
I tried this again today, with a friend, and was able to file TWO CONFIRMED COMPLAINTS and have a nice lunch at the same time!

Do whatever you can, whenever you can. Everything helps.

And finally...a word about money. Everyone involved with the alliance is unpaid. We are all just volunteers who are concerned about the air safety, quality of life, and the health and well being of workers and residents in West Berkeley.

The alliance has all sorts of expenses both current and future...printing flyers and information sheets, renting meeting space, paying for food at community meetings, etc.....and some really big things like doing our own air testing and analysis, or designing and implementing a comprehensive neighborhood health survey and analysis which will cost thousands of dollars before we are all done.

Any amount you can donate will help $5, $20, $100...
If you can't donate an hour of your time, consider donating an hour of your pay.

If you want a tax deduction, you can make a donation through the non-profit Ecology Center who has volunteered to collect money for us.
Ecology Center · 2530 San Pablo Avenue (near Dwight Way), Berkeley, CA 94702
tel: 510-548-2220 · fax: 510-548-2240 · info@ecologycenter.org

Sometimes its hard to see where you're money is going. The wonderful thing about this organization is that ALL of your donation will go to help improve the health and safety of those who live and work in West Berkeley.
Your donation will help us continue the important work we have started.
If you want your money to pay for something specific....let us know.
If you want your money to go for testing...let us know.
If you want your money to go for education and outreach...let us know.
We are a community organization and you can decide how we spend your money.

(The community meeting ended a little after 8pm.)
________________________________________________

We received the following email the day after the meeting. It provides an audience member's perspective...

Great job running the second part of the meeting yesterday. I thought there was good turnout and a lot of community energy that now needs to tapped.
For what it?s worth, here are some ideas I heard people suggest and some of my own:
Call every time you smell the odor and make a complaint. If you won?t be around when the inspector follows up, ask for a complaint declaration form.

Ask the Air Quality Management District to give you an official complaint log so you can keep a record of your complaints. Keep your own log as well using the form passed out at the community meeting at the Berkeley Ecology Center.

Write your public officials demanding action. Explain that this is more than a nuisance?it?s affecting children?s health and yours as well.

Write or call the Air Quality Management District to demand that the public be involved in the design and implementation of the health risk assessment. Tell them it?s better to involve the public upfront and that not doing so risks public rejection of the study?s results. Tell them you are concerned, among other things, that Pacific Steel use today?s production and emissions data in modeling health risks.

Go to a meeting of Berkeley?s Citizens Health Commission (meeting dates and times are listed in the Berkeley Citizen) and demand that the Commission look into the health risks associated with Pacific Steel?s emissions. Give them a copy of the one-page fact sheet passed out at the community meeting that lists the health risks associated with each of the contaminants emitted by Pacific Steel.

Do the same at a meeting of Berkeley?s Citizens Environmental Commission.

Call your City Council Member and Mayor Bates to demand that Pacific Steel be cleaned up. Ask them to honor their promise to hold a community meeting this month and ask them to insist on public involvement in the health risk study.

Contact the Berkeley School Superintendent to express concern about school children?s exposure to Pacific Steel?s pollution. Ask that the School District demand that Pacific Steel clean up its act and that Mayor Bates and the Air Quality Management District address this serious health problem.

When you do any of the above, do it with a neighbor or two for support. Talk to your neighbors about the problem. If they didn?t go to the recent community meeting at the Ecology Center, share some of the materials you picked up with them. Tell them you?re going to call your elected officials tomorrow and ask if they have a few minutes to do the same. Or tell them you?re going to the next meeting of Berkeley?s Citizens Environment Commission and ask them to join you. Or share with them letters you?ve written and see if they?ll sign on or use them as models to write their own.
You get the idea?this problem will only be solved when neighbors band together to have it addressed once and for all.
________________________________________________

Next steps.

Get involved anyway you can (see section 6 above for ways to help)

We are planning another community meeting for September and we need YOUR help making sure people hear about it...so tell your neighbors, workers from Pacific Steel or any business in the area, community leaders, and friends to email us

WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com
and visit...
http://westberkeleyalliance.blogspot.com/

Thank you so much for your continued support and involvement. Everyone is welcome to join us in the fight for clean air and safe jobs!

Please stay in touch with us, and each other!

West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs
http://westberkeleyalliance.blogspot.com/
510.558.8757

Andrew (volunteer)
________________________________________________

NEWS and UPCOMING EVENTS

1.
The Oakland Tribune is planning an article soon about our organization....stay tuned for that.

2.
Pacific Steel has hired a consulting firm to
help them deal with all the community concerns. They want to start
sending out info from PSC regarding health studies
etc. and posting additional community info on the PSC
website.
The name of the firm is
Aroner, Jewel & Ellis partners
www.ajepartners.com
They are consultants in government and public affairs
You can also check out Pacific Steel at...
http://www.pacificsteel.com/

3.
Berkeley City Council member Linda Maio will be holding a community meeting at 7:00 PM on
Wednesday August 10 at the James Kenney Recreation Center. THIS WILL BE A VERY IMPORTANT MEETING. PLEASE ATTEND AND VOICE YOUR CONCERNS!

Letter to Alliance

2005-08-02T21:15:00.000-07:00

Who we are…

Our alliance includes several hundred concerned individuals who live or work in and near West Berkeley. A core group of this alliance have been meeting twice a month to help us stay organized and to reach out to the community. The name we agreed upon for our grassroots group is the West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs (sometimes referred to as the Alliance). We have formed working groups in several key areas and everyone is invited to volunteer and participate. These areas include: dealing with Pacific Steel Casting (PSC) directly, working with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD), communicating with City of Berkeley officials, researching science/technology, developing legal/policy actions, improving media/PR contact, business/school/community education and organizing, how to make an effective pollution complaint, and more! Please volunteer as much or as little as you would like.

What we’ve accomplished so far…

With your help, complaints to the BAAQMD have been increasing dramatically over the last several months. The BAAQMD has officially confirmed many of the complaints resulting in three Notices of Violation being issued to PSC since April. This accomplishes two important things: it provides documentation that the odor nuisance is real and current, and it forces the BAAQMD to follow their rules and put pressure on PSC with Notices of Violation and possible fines. Unfortunately it’s a slow process, so it is very important to keep the pressure on by calling in a complaint any time you smell the burned pot handle (BPH) or any other nuisance odor. Educate and encourage your neighbors to complain whenever they smell it.

Your complaint should include how you are nuisanced or annoyed. This information is very useful in litigation when each person writes and signs an individual statement for each complaint stating the date and time and exactly how we are bothered (had to leave the house, had to go indoors, shut the door and windows, experienced physical symptoms such as irritated eyes and throat, headaches, nausea, etc.) The inspector can attach this statement to his/her report.

The BAAQMD is concerned about the creation of a phone tree that mobilizes people to call in complaints. The BAAQMD encourages us to continue to call in consistently, independently, and spontaneously. (A phone tree organized in Albany Village in 1990 permitted people to call the BAAQMD even when they had not personally smelled the BPH odor. This caused major problems when the BAAQMD took PSC to court in 1991.)

Science by and for the Public…

With the help of Bucket Brigade we’ve been able to take our own air sample and have it analyzed by an independent lab. The Alliance is looking for environmental scientists/chemists to interpret the results. A meteorologist would be very helpful, too. If you, or someone you know has some expertise in these areas, we can begin to link airborne emissions to their source, and determine if PSC emissions constitute unlawful levels of toxic and/or nuisance pollution.

Applauding cooperative officials…

On June 28th, the Alliance met with some BAAQMD staff to introduce our group and to provide them with our identity sheet and a detailed list of our requests. The BAAQMD staff was receptive and answered questions. As of July 12th, they have provided revised complaint guidelines.

Hold the city accountable…

As many of you know, during the April 14th town hall meeting the City of Berkeley mayor, Tom Bates, councilmember Maio’s aide, Brad Smith, and the BAAQMD officials implied there would be testing done and a report available to the public in July (three months later). The BAAQMD has conducted a toxic risk study scheduled to be available July 15th. After beginning a Health Risk Assessment of PSC, the BAAQMD decided to have PSC conduct its own Health Risk Assessment (HRA), with BAAQMD overview, and have PSC use an independent research lab to complete the HRA by Oct.15th. PSC chose ERM as the lab.

Well, the city dropped the ball on testing, and reneged on the follow-up town hall meeting they promised to hold on July 15th. They wanted to wait until September. You can help by contacting the Mayor’s and Linda Maio’s offices letting them know you want them to hold a town hall meeting in July so the city can update us on what they are doing, what PSC is doing and what the BAAQMD is doing to stop the pollution. Call: Councilmember Maio (981-7110) and Mayor Bates (981-7100). Your few seconds on the phone can pressure our officials to be accountable! If you are angry or disappointed with the delay, or if you are concerned about the potential conflict of interest allowing PSC to select the lab, call the city and let them know!

We Need You!

The Alliance has continued to grow significantly. There are now hundreds of people involved, but we need YOU to help us stay organized and strong. We could use help with the following things immediately from people with experience or interest in the following areas.. If you, or someone you know has some experience in these areas, we would love to hear from you.

Database someone with experience (excel spreadsheets and/or filemaker) who can manage a contact list and other member data confidentially and discretely.

Legal Research Research finding an environmental law firm for possible future litigation against PSC, the BAAQMD, and/or the City of Berkeley for failing to protect people from toxics and odor nuisances, failing to keep citizens informed about pollution, failing to allow full public input and oversight, failing to comply with environmental law and policies, etc.

Web manager. Build and maintain a website/blog/yahoo groups address list, etc. to help us educate and get the word out.

Scientists and Environmental Researchers Gather and analyze pollution data, health risks, and environmental policy.

Five Things You Can Do…

1. Come to our general Alliance meeting on Thursday July 28th, from 6-8pm at the Ecology Center at 2530 San Pablo Avenue (near Dwight Way), Berkeley, CA Bring a friend!

2. Educate and organize your neighbors and forward this email to anyone who might be interested.

3. Contact the city to express your concerns about the delay in testing and potential conflicts of interest in the testing process. Councilmember Maio (981-7110) and Mayor Bates (981-7100)

4. File a complaint with the BAAQMD EVERYTIME you smell the odor...24 hour toll-free BAAQMD complaint hotline: 1-800-334-ODOR (6367)

5. Volunteer any way you want to...calling in complaints, helping us organize, finding legal and scientific experts, designing flyers, donating time or money for copying, printing, etc. Let us know how you want to help by emailing us at MakeOurAirClean@Yahoo.com

And thank you for taking the time to stay concerned about this problem.

The West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs
WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com
510.558.8757
http://westberkeleyalliance.blogspot.com/

If you ever want to be added or deleted from this confidential email list, please let us know at WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com

Articles about Pacific Steel Casting.

http://www.berkeleycitizen.org/air/air18.htm

http://www.berkeleydaily.org/article.cfm?archiveDate=04-19-05&storyID=21205

http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/article.cfm?issue=04-01-05&storyID=21060

Links to scientific data, cancer, and health hazards.

http://toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/index_content.html

http://potency.berkeley.edu/

http://chemfinder.cambridgesoft.com/result.asp

http://www.scorecard.org/health-effects/chemicals.tcl?short_hazard_name=cancer&all_p=t

You're invited to our first meeting!

2005-07-21T11:37:00.000-07:00

Hello Neighbor!

It has been some time since we have sent you an
update. Since our last message, several of us began
meeting regularly to discuss the Pacific Steel Casting
issue. Later this week, you will receive a more detailed email mentioning the "West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs" which is what we have formally begun calling ourselves.

A lot has happened since the last townhall meeting in
April where I met many of you. In order to let you
know what we have learned, we would like you to attend
a meeting,

Thursday, July 28th from 6-8 PM
at the Ecology Center in Berkeley

The Ecology Center is located at 2530 San Pablo Avenue, just
south of the intersection with Dwight Way.
At the meeting we will share our recent work to investigate PSC's emissions, answer any questions you might have, give you a chance to meet others who are as concerned as you are about our air quality, explain the process for effectively filing air quality complaints, and let you know how you can get involved!

Please set aside this date... Thursday July 28th from 6-8PM

We look forward to seeing you all there! Everyone is welcome. Bring your family. Bring a friend.

Sincerely,

Sarah Simonet
West Berkeley Alliance for Clean Air and Safe Jobs
New email...WestBerkeleyAlliance@Yahoo.com

Thursday, July 28th from 6-8 PM
at the Ecology Center in Berkeley,
2530 San Pablo Avenue,
(just south of the intersection with Dwight Way.)

Some parking is available in the Bank of
America parking lot just south of the Ecology Center.

And AC transit...72, 72M, and 72R go right by the Ecology Center too.