4 18-0383 Subject: Bay Area Air Quality Management District Report And Resolution On Heavily Impacted Communities
From: Councilmember Kaplan
Recommendation: Adopt The Following Pieces Of Legislation;
1) Receive An Informational Report From Councilmember Kaplan On Recent Bay Area Air Quality Management District Board Actions; And
While most of the Bay Area has enjoyed improving air quality and health outcomes, East and West Oakland continue to experience an unconscionable number of illnesses and deaths attributable to air pollution. I learned this recently, after three years of asthma exacerbations, followed by breathing problems for my son, all of which started when I moved to East Oakland in 2015.
Imagine my horror upon discovering that placing elementary schools next to foundries, and mega-crematoriums next to residential neighborhoods, is just "business as usual" in historically segregated and redlined East and West Oakland, and always has been.
If the city cares about undoing the vicious legacy of environmental racism that characterizes the patchwork of residential and industrial zones in East and West Oakland, it will support any and all measures to ensure that these areas are prioritized for air quality improvements--not only by BAAQMD, but also by city planning departments and regulators.
While most of the Bay Area has enjoyed improving air quality and health outcomes, East and West Oakland continue to experience an unconscionable number of illnesses and deaths attributable to air pollution. I learned this recently, after three years of asthma exacerbations, followed by breathing problems for my son, all of which started when I moved to East Oakland in 2015.
Imagine my horror upon discovering that placing elementary schools next to foundries, and mega-crematoriums next to residential neighborhoods, is just "business as usual" in historically segregated and redlined East and West Oakland, and always has been.
If the city cares about undoing the vicious legacy of environmental racism that characterizes the patchwork of residential and industrial zones in East and West Oakland, it will support any and all measures to ensure that these areas are prioritized for air quality improvements--not only by BAAQMD, but also by city planning departments and regulators.