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Our Bay Area Air Quality Under Threat & the Fired Whistleblowers at BAAQMD

chevron_richmond_refinery_fire.jpg
Date:
Sunday, March 19, 2017
Time:
1:30 PM - 3:30 PM
Event Type:
Panel Discussion
Organizer/Author:
United Public Workers For Action
Location Details:
San Francisco Main Library Latino Room Lower Level
100 Larkin St./8th and Market Civic Center BART Station
San Francisco

Our Bay Area Air Quality Under Threat & The Fired Whistleblowers At Bay Area Air Quaility Management District BAAQMD
Sunday March 19, 2017 1:30 PM
San Francisco Main Library Latino Room Lower Level
100 Larkin St./8th and Market Civic Center BART Station
San Francisco

The recent revelations from two Bay Area Air Quality Management District, Michael Bachmann who was the manager of records and Sarah Steele an employee who were involved in protecting records and documents discovered the deliberate destruction of critical pollution records, settlements and fines and were retaliated against is very serious. In August 2015, Bachmann was alerted that documents were being destroyed even though they were subject to a subpoena in current litigation involving Berkeley’s Pacific Steel Casting.

There have been continuing ongoing dangerous gas and oil leaks by Chevron, Tesoro, Shell, Philipps 66 and other polluters as well as the deaths of the workers and serious health problems in many bay area communities where these refineries and toxic plants exist. Destroying pollution records and the history of these polluters is not only inexcusable but criminal.

These two BAAQMD employees put their careers and jobs on the line to protect the public and the health and safety of our environment and top executives of the BAAQD illegally conspired to thwart these employees by firing them from this public agency. Unfortunately workplace bullying and retaliation against whistleblowers is a systemic problem not just at this agency but at other public agencies as well.

The epidemic of illegal retaliation of whistleblowers like Quality Assurance Manager Michael Madry at Test America and other whistleblowers at Tetra Tech which the Navy had hired for tests at Hunters Point and Treasure Island have all taken place without any accountability by government agencies like OSHA WPP and District Attorneys and the State Attorney General.

The regional independent agency BAAQMD is responsible to protect the air quality of the over 12 million people in Northern California and this forum will discuss the continuing contamination issues facing people in the bay area and the role of the BAAQMD management in the bullying and discharge of workers.

It will also discuss how people can defend these whistleblowers and force the California Attorney General and District Attorneys to protect public workers who are criminally retaliated against for doing their job and protecting the interests of the public.


Initial Speakers:
Dr. Larry Rose, Former Cal-OSHA Medical Director
Dr. Ahimsa Porter Sumchai, Radiological Subcommittee of the Hunters Point Shipyard Restoration Advisory Board, Founder Radiological Subcommittee of Hunters Point Ship Yard & Veterans Administration Environmental Registry former Medical Officer
Steve Nadel, Sunflower Alliance
Francisco Da costa, Hunters Point Environmental Justice Advocacy, Director S.E. Sector Community Development Corporation
Steve Ingraham, West Berkley Alliance For Clean Air & Jobs
Daniel Berman, Author of "Death On The Job"

Sponsored by
United Public Workers For Action
http://www.upwa.info
Injured Workers National Network
Stop Workplace Bullying Group
http://stopworkplacebullyinggroup.org
info(at)upwa.info
(415)282-1908

Additional info:
https://youtu.be/QuMHn1FqDAE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TkxcCZtHQQ
http://www.dailycal.org/2017/02/22/whistleblowers-file-claim-bay-area-air-quality-management-district/
http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/02/22/whistleblowers-mystery-file-cabinet-dumped-boxes-of-pollution-records-part-of-air-regulators-document-destruction/
http://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Ex-air-quality-workers-say-district-illegally-10949383.php
http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2017/02/22/former-bay-area-air-quality-agency-workers-file-whistleblower-claim/
http://www.berkeleycitizen.org/Pacific%20Steel/pacific8.htm
https://youtu.be/W9cbCtKBlkQ
Added to the calendar on Tue, Mar 7, 2017 3:51PM
§California AG Xavier Becerra Being Called On To Investigate & Prosecute BAAQMD Execs
by United Public Workers For Action
becerra_swearingin.jpeg
Community groups and unionists are demanding that the newly installed California Attorney General Xavier Becerra investigate and prosecute Bay Area Air Quaility Management District executives. These managers were involved in criminally conspiring to bully and terminate whistleblowers at the agency who were trying to stop the destruction of critical documents and records of the polluters. The destruction of these documents would have limited the liability of companies like Chevron, Tesoro, Shell and Pacific Steel Casting and Philipps 66. The California Attorney General is responsible for oversight of this independent regulatory agency and the politicians who are on the board of this agency should be demanding that this investigation should take place.

Bay Area Air Quality Management District Board Of Directors
http://www.baaqmd.gov/about-the-air-district/board-of-directors
Board of Directors

The Air District’s Board of Directors is made up of 24 locally elected representatives from 9 Bay Area counties. Each county’s population determines the number of representatives on the Board, as follows:

• Marin and Napa: 1 representative each

• Solano and Sonoma: 2 representatives each

• San Francisco and San Mateo: 3 representatives each

• Alameda, Contra Costa, and Santa Clara: 4 representatives each
The Board has 8 standing committees that assist the District in its mission to improve air quality, protect public health and global climate.

Rules and regulations are adopted by a majority of the Board, with public hearings required before rules are changed or adopted.

Questions or comments to the Board may be sent to the Clerk of the Boards. To ensure your message is presented at the next Board meeting, be sure to send it 24 hours before the meeting starts.

Members

• CHAIR


Vice Mayor Liz Kniss
City of Palo Alto

• VICE CHAIR


Vice Mayor David E. Hudson
City of San Ramon

• SECRETARY


Supervisor Katie Rice
County of Marin


Council Member Abe-Koga
City of Mountain View


Vice Mayor Teresa Barrett
City of Petaluma


Supervisor David J. Canepa
San Mateo County


Supervisor Cindy Chavez
Santa Clara County


Mayor Pauline Russo Cutter
City of San Leandro


Supervisor John Gioia
Contra Costa County


Supervisor Carole Groom
San Mateo County


Supervisor Scott Haggerty
Alameda County


Council Member Rebecca Kaplan
City of Oakland


Vice Mayor Doug Kim
City of Belmont


Mayor Edwin M. Lee
City and County of San Francisco


Supervisor Nate Miley
Alameda County


Supervisor Karen Mitchoff
Contra Costa County


Supervisor Hillary Ronen
City and County of San Francisco


Council Member Mark Ross
City of Martinez


Mayor Pete Sanchez
City of Suisun City


Supervisor Jeff Sheehy
City and County of San Francisco


Council Member Rod Sinks
City of Cupertino


Supervisor Jim Spering
Solano County


Supervisor Brad Wagenknecht
Napa County


Supervisor
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