Tag Archives: Stop Oil Trains Week of Action #StopOilTrains

#StopOilTrains Week of Action Highlights 2016

70 cities rise up to #StopOilTrains

Interactive map and photos from 70 cities around the country

The 2016 Stop Oil Trains Week of Action was a powerful demonstration of resistance to oil trains. Across 70 cities the public, the media and elected officials were reminded that 25 million Americans still live in the blast zone.

We made sure decision makers and public officials know that we have not forgotten the Lac-Mégantic tragedy or the fiery June 3rd oil train derailment in the Columbia River Gorge — we know the blast zone is a dangerous place to be. There has been more damage done by oil trains in the past three years than the previous four decades combined.

And July 6 to 12th, we did something about it. Together, we sent a powerful message that it’s time to #StopOilTrains.

Every oil train battle, every action and event, is part of a bigger movement to protect public health, safety, and the climate.

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An email from by Ross Hammond, STAND.earth:

Friends — I wanted to give a big thanks from all of us at Stand.earth for all of the incredible actions that took place around North America this past week. We have a photo blog here which will give you some flavor of what happened….

It goes without saying that the movement to #StopOilTrains and other fossil fuel infrastructure doesn’t just happen one week a year. But this past week was a powerful reminder for all of us of the incredible creativity and resourcefulness of our movement. And in what I can only describe as some sort of divine justice, during the week of action our allies in Baltimore achieved a huge organizing victory when Targa Resources withdrew its application for a crude oil storage and loading facility.

Thanks again from all of us, and let’s work together over the next year to ensure that next year’s week of action isn’t even necessary.

Oil train organizing in Davis, California

Repost from an email, Lynne Nittler, of Davis, CA
[Editor:  Lynne Nittler and her friends at Cool Davis and Yolano Climate Action do a great job of organizing.  Davis is a primary “uprail community” that would be at high risk if Valero Benicia Refinery’s Crude By Rail proposal is permitted.  I appreciated Lynne’s recent update and summary, below.  – RS]

Oil Train: photos, Ca Energy Commission powerpoint, & actions

From: Lynne Nittler
Sent: Wednesday, July 22, 2015 3:15 PM

Dear oil train friends,

1.  July 11 Stop Oil Trains Action –  photos

On July 11, over 80 Davis residents turned out to remember the 2013 oil derailment that decimated Lac-Megantic, taking 47 lives.  Davis faces the threat of a similar accident.  Currently, at least one oil train of Bakken Crude per week passes through Davis headed to the Bay Area.  Two more 100-car trains per day are planned for the near future for the Valero Refinery in Benicia and the Phillips 66 refinery in San Luis Obispo…unless citizens stop them.

The Davis Stop Oil Trains action was one of many during the Week of Oil Train Action.  Check out photographs from actions across the country here.  Look for Davis!  https://www.flickr.com/photos/foresethics/sets/72157655110369339

See our own review with photos here:  https://yolanoclimateaction.wordpress.com/2015/07/20/davis-residents-protest-oil-trains-moving-through-town/

2.  Review of July 11:

Locally, the ForestEthics  www.Blast-Zone.org map shows endangered homes and businesses along 2nd Street including the police station, Carlton Plaza Senior Living and Rancho Yolo.  The entire Davis downtown is vulnerable along with parts of UC Davis campus and apartments complexes along Olive Drive.

The July 11 Vigil and Rally highlighted public opposition to oil trains passing through Davis. Too many residents live in the oil train blast zone, the one mile evacuation zone recommended by safety officials in the case of an oil train derailment and fire. ForestEthics calculates that nationwide, 25 million Americans live in the blast zone.

Wearing fiery red, yellow and orange shirts, Davisites met at the train station and walked through the Davis blast zone downtown to the Rotary Stage in Central Park.

We sang feisty songs led by the Raging Grannies.  We’ll be starting a group in Davis.  Let Lynne know if you’re interested.

Mayor Dan Wolk explained the city council’s resolution opposing oil by rail, available at http://citycouncil.cityofdavis.org/Media/Default/Documents/PDF/CityCouncil/CouncilMeetings/Agendas/20140422/04B-Opposing-Oil-By-Rail.pdf

City Councilman Lucas Frerichs spoke on the Sacramento Area Council of Government’s nearly unanimous decision to confront the issue.  SACOG is composed of 22 cities and 6 counties.  http://www.sacog.org/calendar/2014/08/rail/pdf/2-Valero%20EIR%20Comments.pdf

At the state level, Senator Lois Wolk shared the past and present legislative responses to the sudden surge of crude-by-rail transport into California aimed at protecting the public as well as sensitive habitat and waterways.

Supervisor Jim Provenza and Damien Luzzo focused on the extraction side of the issue in Yolo County.  Damien offered his story about how he came to oppose fracking at http://tinyurl.com/CAFrackWars and the Pledge of Resistance at http://tinyurl.com/FrackingPledgeOfResistance.  Sign his petition to ban fracking!

3.  Urgent Action:  Urge Assemblyman Bill Dodd to support SB32 & SB350!   Information on the proposed Yolo ban on fracking were available as well as a letter to Assemblyman Bill Dodd urging him to support two critical climate bills due for a vote in mid-August:

  • SB32 extending our CA carbon reduction bill, and
  • SB350 aiming for 50% lower car emissions, 50% greater building efficiency, and 50% more solar and wind-generated electricity  by 2030.

4.  Conclusion:

There is NO safe way to transport extreme tar sands and Bakken crude. Two years after Lac-Mégantic, oil trains keep exploding and carbon pollution keeps rising.  Oil trains are a disaster for our health, our safety, and our climate.

Given the unresolved dangers of crude oil transport by rail and the overload of carbon emissions already in the atmosphere, a more prudent path is to leave all extreme crude in the ground, transition to clean, renewable energy, and practice energy conservation in an effort to reverse climate change and live sustainably on a finite planet.

5.  Next oil train actions:

Powerpoint by CA Energy Commission: Read attached, a thorough and up-to-date powerpoint, to educate yourself on national and state oil and crude by rail issues in CA.  Excellent resource!

Santa Maria refinery in San Luis Obispo:  We are waiting for a hearing announcement where we can testify.

Valero Refinery in Benicia:  The revised DEIR will be released on Aug. 31 for a 45-day written public comment period.  Our letters will be crucial when the Planning commission and late the City council makes their decisions whether to finalize the EIR and permit Valero’s rail spur.

Arrests in Martinez as Californians demonstrate against oil trains

Repost from Bay Area Indymedia
[This belated report has nothing new on the arrests on our bridge, but it shows some good pics of the Stop Oil Trains protest in San Jose.  – RS]

Arrests in Martinez as Californians demonstrate against oil trains

By R. Robertson , Jul 14th, 2015 6:22 PM
Police arrested four Bay Area protesters after they suspended themselves from the Benicia-Martinez railroad bridge to hang a banner protesting oil trains. Photos here are of the protest in San Jose, California. Both protests were part of a week of action against oil trains.
Police arrested four Bay Area protesters after they suspended themselves from the Benicia-Martinez railroad bridge to hang a banner protesting oil trains last week.
800_350sanjosebeststn.jpg original image ( 3264x2448)
Raging Grannies – NO MORE EXPLODING OIL TRAINS!

Elsewhere in California, Raging Grannies in Davis and San Jose enlivened protests there singing out, ”No more exploding trains”.

Oil trains go through almost every US state, disproportionately over poorer American communities. The crude oil moving by train is more toxic, explosive, and carbon intensive than conventional oil. It puts millions of Americans and Canadians at risk. Last week there were more than 80 protests and educational events in North America about this danger.

The Lac-Mégantic rail disaster happened July 6, 2013, when a freight train carrying Bakken formation crude oil rolled downhill and derailed, resulting in the fire and explosion of multiple tank cars. Forty-seven people died and many others injured. Last week’s events were timed to coincide with the anniversary of that catastrophe.

 

Rally to Stop Oil Trains in Richmond, California, Saturday, July 11

Repost from Stop Oil Trains Week of Action July 6-11

Rally to Stop Oil Trains in Richmond, California, Saturday, July 11, 2015 – 11am in Atchison Village Park

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In Richmond, the fight against crude by rail is the latest example of the fossil fuel industry’s blatant disregard for the climate and the health and safety of communities of color. We know we don’t need this toxic and explosive extreme oil – already, our communities are building solutions for climate resilience and social justice. Together, we demand an end to extreme fossil fuels as we usher in a just transition to a clean, equitable, and thriving economy for all.

This summer, the fight against oil trains is heating up across the Bay Area, California, and North America. Richmond is on the front lines of two major oil train fights: first, environmental justice leaders have been fighting to shut down the illegal Kinder Morgan oil trains terminal, which was permitted behind the backs of the community. In addition, the proposed Phillips 66 oil trains terminal in San Luis Obispo County would bring an additional 2.5 million gallons of toxic, explosive tar sands oil daily through the city. Already, the climate justice movement in Richmond and beyond have been stepping up to fight both projects. Now is the time to turn up the heat.

This July marks both the height of the Summer of Our Power and the second annual Stop Oil Trains Week of Action that commemorates the second anniversary of the tragic Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, oil train catastrophe that killed 47 people.

That’s why On Saturday, July 11th, a coalition of environmental justice, labor, climate, and community groups will mobilize thousands of people to stop oil trains in Richmond, as part of the Summer of Our Power and the national Stop Oil Trains Week of Action.