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A US appeals court last week upheld a previous ruling finding that Chevron oil company is not liable for the deaths of two Nigerians in 1998 who were shot and killed while protesting the company. The two were in a group of about 100 people that surrounded a Chevron oil platform off the Nigerian coast and disrupted production for four days. Chevron called the action a hostage taking and enlisted the help of Nigerian security forces, who subsequently shot many of the protesters. Meanwhile, in California, Chevron has not been as lucky in the courts, so it is lobbying the legislature for its next big win. It is seeking approval to expand its Point Richmond refinery in Northern California. In April a state appeals court upheld a previous judge’s decision that Chevron’s plans violated state environmental laws. Community groups have organized against the expansion plans for years and saw the court rulings as a huge victory. In 2009 data from the California Air Resources Board identified the Point Richmond refinery as the single largest source of greenhouse gas pollution in the state. The proposed expansion would make the facility capable of processing dirtier grades of crude oil, which would result in even more greenhouse gas emissions from the site. Chevron is now involved in closed-door talks with members of the state legislature to negotiate an exemption from the environmental regulations that are stalling its project.

GUEST: Jessica Tovar, Community Organizer with Communities for a Better Environment in Oakland, CA

Communities for a Better Environment’s website: www.cbecal.org

Demand that state officials deny Chevron an exemption to environmental laws and keep them from refining dirty crude in the state of California:

Speaker of the Assembly- John Perez
320 West 4th Street
Room 1050
Los Angeles, CA 90013
Tel: (213) 620-4646
Fax: (213) 620-6319

Senator Darrell Steinberg
1020 N Street, #576
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-1529
Fax: (916) 327-8754