August 2001 -
In This Issue:
 We Win! - Recent OCE Victories
New Lawsuits and Developments
New OCE Team Members
We Are Growing!
We Win!
BP AMOCO -- OCE Forces the Government to Withdraw Its Consent Decree
On June 5, 2001, OCE counsel, George Hays represented OCE at a hearing in federal court to request that a settlement agreement between BP Exploration and EPA and the Justice Department be voided. The consent decree sets a dangerous national precedent because it is inconsistent with the Clean Air Act.
OCE objected to the consent decree negotiated between the government and BP Amoco on two grounds: 1) the deal undermined the Clean Air Act's New Source Review Program; and 2) the government had not provided adequate "notice of violation" before lodging the consent decree which was a jurisdictional requirement.
Adequate notice is critical for us to determine whether the government is giving away the store for massive excessive dangerous Clean Air Act violations. The oral argument by OCE's attorney, George Hays, resulted in the government conceding that OCE was correct! The government then made a motion to withdraw the decree. The government has now issued a new notice of violation specifically describing the violations at issue in the case.
This result will impact all future EPA cases, in that the government will now provide adequate notice to provide the public with a fair opportunity to comment on these back door deals.
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New Lawsuits and Other Developments
New Lawsuit against Mirant and the Air District
On June 19, 2001, OCE, with Bayview Hunters Point Community Advocates, joined by Communities for a Better Environment ("CBE"), filed a lawsuit in federal court in San Francisco against Mirant Potrero, LLC and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD). The lawsuit stems from a backroom deal done between BAAQMD and Mirant to allow the company to run dirty power generators (oil) called peakers at its Potrero power plant. Peakers are designed to run typically during emergencies and for other limited uses and therefore are equipped with minimal pollution controls, if any. The peakers emit NOx, a precursor of ozone (smog), particulate matter (soot), and carcinogenic compounds and nerve toxins, including, benzene, formaldehyde, dioxin, hexavalent chromium, lead, mercury and nickel.
More Air District Oversight
On June 15, 2001, OCE and Golden Gate Law School provided comments protesting the Air District's action to expand the use of "emergency standby engines" or diesel-fueled back-up generators due to the "energy crisis." The air district's action fails to consider the environmental impact of use of these generators on a "non-emergency" or regular basis.
Muni Alternative Fuels Bus Pilot Program
OCE is the only nonprofit organization with a role on the San Francisco Muni Alternative Fuels Bus Pilot Program Oversight Committee. The rest of the committee is comprised of members of SF's Department of the Environment, PG&E, and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. The Oversight Committee took its first ride on two of the buses being tested by SF Muni, a natural gas bus and a diesel-electric hybrid bus on June 7. It was obvious that pedestrians could tell right away that these were not the standard Muni diesel or electric buses as they stopped in their tracks to view the buses as they glided by. The committee will continue to meet regularly throughout the duration of the pilot program.
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New Team Members join OCE!
Brian Shepard - Brian is an entrepreneur most recently working at Etranslate in London, England. Brian is a long-time supporter of OCE and has agreed to serve on the OCE Board of Directors.
Welcome Brian!!
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We Are Growing!
OCE Executive Director, Tiffany Schauer, traveled to New York, D.C. and Philadelphia to meet with organizations that are working on air pollution issues. She introduced OCE to:
NY PIRG
The Rockefeller Family Foundation
The Clean Air Trust
The American Lung Association
Clear the Air
National Environmental Trust
National Parks Conservation Association
PennFuture
Terrace, Pravlik, and Millian
Columbia University Environmental Law Clinic
Natural Resources Defense Council
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