Scientists Rail Against Oakland Airport Expansion
7/25/24, Oakland, CA – Bay Area scientists provided public comment at the Port of Oakland Board meeting to help inform the board of the dire consequences of expanding air travel for both the local Oakland environment and for climate change overall.
On July 17, 2023, the Port of Oakland released a Draft Environmental Impact Report on the Oakland International Airport Terminal Modernization and Development Project, which details plans to modernize the existing terminals at the Oakland International Airport. It also proposes the building of a third terminal with 16 additional gates. This expansion plan was proposed to meet projected increases in air travel through OAK and to reap the benefits of any increased associated commerce.
Unfortunately, the preliminary EIR released by the Port of Oakland did not include a local Health Impact Assessment. East Oakland residents experience some of the highest asthma hospitalization rates in the region, and more deaths due to heart disease, stroke and lung cancer than both Oakland, generally, and Alameda County. The planned OAK expansion will likely exacerbate the many environmental and health impacts which our community members experience. “I'm most concerned about the people in the flight path where there's a plume of ultrafine particles that get deep into people's lungs and houses, because there is no regulation of the ultra fine particles. We're talking about Hayward, San Leandro, San Lorenzo, AND East Oakland. The people that benefit from those 16 new gates and added flights aren't the people that are living under that plume and being harmed” says Esther Goolsby, Northern California Program Co-Director, Communities for a Better Environment. The scientists attending this meeting will ask the board if a local health assessment has been considered.
The scientists will also emphasize that the Earth is at a critical point in terms of climate change. According to The World Health Organization, approximately 489,000 heat-related deaths occurred worldwide each year between 2000 and 2019. Last month, Las Vegas, Nevada hit 120 degrees fahrenheit and sidewalk temperatures reached 130 degrees. These temperatures exceed the human body’s capacity to survive for even short periods. Such extreme temperature events are the direct result of heat-trapping gasses humans have added to the atmosphere. In particular, airplane travel emits 4 to 20 times more particulate and global warming gas than other forms of transportation, especially when compared to train or motor coach travel. The predominantly short-haul flights originating at OAK tend to produce even more emissions per passenger mile than longer flights.
Compounding the highly polluting nature of air travel is the fact that just 1% of flyers account for 50% of all aviation emissions. These are mostly frequent fliers taking unnecessary, recreational trips. Everything we do to make airplane travel more convenient, or cheaper, or more attractive - as the OAK expansion is trying to do - will have an extremely destructive impact on our climate and our lives, but it is an impact which the recreational flier will not feel as they get on the plane. There is a disconnect between the flier’s action and the consequence. Therefore local scientists are speaking out, in an effort to ensure that the public and the board are aware of the long term impacts of the proposed OAK expansion.
Alternatives exist! The full Environmental Impact Report for California High Speed Rail was recently approved for the entire length of the line. Other options are on the way for more environmentally responsible travel within California and for the rest of the country as well. In addition, the COVID pandemic taught business how to use internet video calls instead of face-to-face meetings. The volume of air travel in and out of OAK has dropped as a result, even after the pandemic has eased. There is very little justification for expanding OAK at this time.
Scientist Rebellion is a member of the Stop OAK Expansion Coalition, which is made up of 78 organizations dedicated to a healthier and climate-safe future.
Citations:
https://www.who.int/health-topics/heatwaves#tab=tab_1
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/hot-hot-human-body-function-optimally-rcna92346
https://www.eea.europa.eu/media/infographics/co2-emissions-from-passenger-transport/view