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Lawsuit Challenges Port of Long Beach Oil Storage Expansion [1]

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Date: 2024-12-16  

Press release from Earthjustice and Communities for a Better Environment (CBE):

Groups take action to halt oil tanks near schools and overburdened communities

Los Angeles, CA – Today, Earthjustice, representing and co-counseling with Communities for a Better Environment (CBE), sued the City of Long Beach for approving a controversial crude oil storage project at the Port of Long Beach.

The project—proposed by World Oil Terminals—includes the construction of two 25,000-barrel tanks, exacerbating environmental and health harms for environmental justice communities already overburdened by industrial pollution from the second busiest port in the United States.

Last month, the Long Beach City Council denied an appeal and authorized the project to proceed.

“The Port of Long Beach brands itself as a "green port," and recently withdrew funding for fireworks events citing environmental concerns, yet it greenlit this harmful project,” said Oscar Espino-Padron, attorney at Earthjustice. “We are taking legal action to demand better for communities who have been trapped in a deadly web of oil infrastructure for too long, subjecting them to elevated cancer risks, toxic fumes and chemical fires.”

The lawsuit challenges the City’s certification of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) that failed to adequately assess the project’s cumulative environmental harms, ignored feasible alternatives, and underestimated the risks posed to public health and safety. The oil tanks, proposed to be built about half a mile from schools, are expected to emit hydrogen sulfide, benzene and other volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, that contribute to smog formation and are linked to leukemia. Storage tank emissions from oil and gas are underreported to the public and regulators, according to studies, including one from the South Coast Air Quality Management District.

“As a Long Beach resident and having grown up in South Gate, it is frustrating to see my elected officials expanding crude oil infrastructure in already severely overburdened communities, all while claiming to champion environmental protections,” said Dilia Ortega, special projects director at CBE. “Councilmember Suely Saro and Mayor Rex Richardson have an opportunity to stand up for public health and safety by halting harmful projects like this one. We urge them to stop this crude oil project, support a moratorium on fossil fuel infrastructure expansions at the Port of Long Beach, and protect the health of the residents that elected them.”

The lawsuit comes as residents in Wilmington, Carson, and West Long Beach already face:

Elevated cancer risk rates , in fact, the highest cancer risks in the region.

, in fact, the highest cancer risks in the region. Toxic air pollution from diesel trucks, locomotives and the largest refinery in California.

from diesel trucks, locomotives and the largest refinery in California. Safety risks, such as explosions, fires, and hazardous spills—incidents that are recurrent.

“Not only is this project unnecessary—it’s reckless,” said Aleja Cretcher at CBE. “The Port of Long Beach is approving a project that contradicts the goals of the state, the city, and the port itself to transition away from fossil fuels. Instead of protecting vulnerable communities, the City Council and mayor are allowing polluters to continue harming them with industrial pollution.”

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