Saturday’s blaze at the Martinez oil refinery belched over half a ton of sulphur dioxide (SO2) into the atmosphere. The noxious fumes triggered a Level 2 Hazmat alert that progressed to Level 3. Residents nearby received warnings to seal doors and windows as they shelter in place until further notice.

When I was 12 years old, I left Oakland for a small town on the southern edge of the Carquinez Strait. The towering buildings of Oakland and neighboring San Francisco were replaced by the smokestacks of refineries.  The East Bay is primarily defined by Oakland and Berkeley, but there is

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San Francisco may be neglecting the full potential of the strategic waterways that brought it into being. If you’ve ever sat in Bridge traffic and watched boats fly by on the water below, you might have felt the same. There is no reason the Bay Area shouldn’t have as robust

If you go north of Berkeley, you’ll notice something interesting about the East Bay’s shoreline. It becomes increasingly industrial once you cross the boundary into Contra Costa County. Richmond is the first city you hit (El Cerrito is just rich Richmond) and it serves as a quintessential example of an

It’s November, and despite climate change, the Bay Area still kind of has winters. Well, at least by California standards. San Francisco is being spared the worst chills from the cold front. We’re only dropping down to 43 degrees this week at our lowest. Still cold, but not freezing. The

Earthquakes are as much a part of Bay Area life as fog, hills and cable cars. But for some reason, other than learning about the wreckage of past quakes, the average Bay Area resident doesn’t spend much time discussing how a large earthquake would effect modern Bay Area infrastructure. The Hayward

What I’m about to tell you isn’t a secret. I’m from the East Bay. I was born in Walnut Creek, lived in Oakland’s Laurel neighborhood until I was 12 and then moved around Contra Costa until we ended up finding a permanent spot in Martinez. I lived in Emerson Arms,

Decades have gone by since the Bay Area felt the power of a strong earthquake and each passing year without a major incident creates a greater sense of complacency. However, Monday night served as a wakeup call – a fairly gentle reminder that ‘it’s not if, but when.’ Those who