At its May 23, 2017 meeting, the Benicia City Council agreed on a 4-1 vote to “agendize in the future” a discussion on possible adoption of an Industrial Safety Ordinance (ISO). That was over seven months ago now. More than most, I am aware of the time it often takes for government to move forward […]
Roger Straw: City staff appears to favor Valero, ignore opponents in agenda attachments
On Thursday last week, city of Benicia staff released the agenda for the crucial and perhaps decisive Sept. 20 meeting of the Benicia City Council. A staff report accompanying the agenda stands by the staff’s previous positions on Valero’s oil train proposal, recommending on Page 10 that Council approve Valero’s appeal, reject Benicia’s Planning Commission […]
Roger Straw: Crude by rail is dangerous — and dirty!
BACK IN JUNE OF 2013, I was alarmed to discover that Valero had plans to make me and all of Benicia complicit in the massive destruction taking place in the pristine forests of Alberta, Canada. With city Planning Commission approval, Valero planned to purchase crude oil taken from strip mines in Canada that are the […]
Roger Straw: Valero report not likely to withstand further scrutiny
THE CITY OF BENICIA issued an announcement on May 21, delaying its release of a revised draft environmental impact report on Valero Benicia Refinery’s proposal to construct an offloading facility for delivery of crude by rail. With this delay, the city will have spent more than two and a half years processing Valero’s proposal and […]
Roger Straw: A straw man
THE HERALD’S RECENT TWO PART SERIES (click HERE and HERE) on the Union Pacific Railroad emergency training at Valero for a crude-by-rail accident suggested that someone, somewhere has claimed that “crude oil fires can’t be extinguished” and that “foam doesn’t put out fires.” Valero Fire Chief Joe Bateman called it a “fabrication,” and he’s right. […]
For Benicia’s sake, stop Crude by Rail
MANY THANKS TO THE BENICIA HERALD for its detailed coverage of Valero’s presentation earlier this week on its Crude-by-Rail Project. Donna Beth Weilenman’s lengthy report presented the very best in understanding Valero’s message. I was somewhat disappointed, however. A small but growing segment of Benicia residents and business owners attended Valero’s meeting, offering a peaceful […]
Time out from railroad explosions and all that …
OK, TIME OUT FROM THE PRESSING ISSUES OF THE DAY. Let’s just take a little break from thinking about railroad tankers, air pollution and climate change. We can leave dysfunctional two-party politics, health care, the NSA and the tea party to someone else for a few minutes. We can always come back to them. Today […]