Coal news and updates

Hundreds of people filled the Oakland City Council chambers and several meeting rooms as the council considers whether to ban the storage and handling of coal and petroleum coke in the city.

The commentary at times developed into a raucous meeting frequently punctuated by cheers, applause and outbursts from audience members on both sides of the issue.

The expected vote would come after more than a year of debate pitting environmental activists against business and community leaders, who claimed that without coal as a possible commodity, a planned bulk export terminal in West Oakland would be at risk of losing critical funding.

Though the ban on storing and handling coal pertains only to future projects, the council will also consider a resolution applying the new rule to the planned Oakland Bulk and Oversized Terminal, a roughly 20-acre marine terminal representing less than one-fifth of the 135-acre redevelopment of the former Army Base taking shape on the Outer Harbor.

Already, one member of the public, Ron Muhammad, who is pro-coal, was ejected from the meeting after he repeatedly interrupted speakers. Muhammad represents a vocal contingent of the audience arguing that prohibiting coal as a commodity at the terminal would jeopardize the project's viability and risk losing good jobs.

Source: eastbaytimes