In September 2020, the Board of Supervisors (Board) adopted a Climate Emergency Resolution that, among other things, resolves “that the Board of Supervisors and the County Sustainability Commission seek input from the community (with a special focus on highly impacted Environmental Justice communities), workers (especially impacted workers), and business/industry to help the County anticipate and plan for an economy that is less dependent on fossil fuels, helps plan for a "Just Transition" away from a fossil-fuel dependent economy, and considers how the County's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic can incorporate the County's climate goals. As the State of California adopts policies and goals for reducing pollution and addressing climate change, the County will develop strategies to improve the health, safety, infrastructure, job opportunities and revenue opportunities during the shift to a zero-emission economy. The County will provide special attention to helping develop new opportunities for frontline and impacted communities that realize economic, health and other benefits. The Commission will include this topic in its ongoing advice to the Board of Supervisors.”
The County’s engagement on Just Transition will build on and complement the ongoing work of the County and seven city partners on the Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative, as further discussed below.
In October 2020, the Sustainability Commission received a report on Just Transition efforts in other communities in the U.S. and internationally.
In March 2021, the Sustainability Committee discussed options for a process that will facilitate an inclusive Just Transition. That meeting included a presentation from Assemblymember Tim Grayson on AB 844, the Green Empowerment Zone legislation, which was subsequently approved and signed into law. The meeting also included a presentation from Congressman Mark DeSaulnier on federal legislation he was sponsoring to prepare the community for the impacts of refinery closures.
In 2020, two of the four oil refineries in Contra Costa County, Marathon and Phillips 66, submitted applications to manufacture renewable fuel in lieu of fossil fuels. Those applications were approved by the Board in May 2022 and are awaiting permits from the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.
The approvals for both projects included detailed requirements to implement a Demolition and Site Clean-Up/Reuse Program. Both refineries also entered into Community Benefits Agreements (CBAs) that will provide substantial funding to the County that the County will allocate to “projects and programs that benefit the communities near the Refinery by improving the health, well-being, and quality of life of residents, and that support building and sustaining a strong and resilient local economy and workforce, including the development and implementation of workforce development and training programs to prepare residents for new renewable and clean energy career pathways and jobs”. Both refineries have also committed through their CBAs “to actively participate with other appropriate stakeholders in planning and designing a Workforce Training Program for local community members related to renewable and clean energy employment opportunities”.
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Federal Community Project Funding for Just Transition Planning
The County is in the process of accepting a grant from HUD to develop a Just Transition Economic Revitalization Plan (JTERP), a long-term strategic planning process resulting in a roadmap for implementing land use changes to attract and accommodate businesses in the industry clusters identified through the Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative (Initiative), which include advanced transportation fuels, bio-tech/bio-medical, diverse manufacturing, food processing, and clean tech; developing strategies to attract and support businesses in these industry clusters; workforce (re)training to transition from fossil fuel-related industries to other forms of production and employment that are clean and sustainable; and promoting equity in helping Contra Costa County achieve its economic development goals.
The pending grant award is the result of the Board’s direction to seek a Congressional earmark for work on this topic and the work of Representative Mark DeSaulnier and his colleagues to seek and secure a funding appropriation through the federal budget process. The Sustainability Committee will be making recommendations to the Board of Supervisors on how this funding will be used in the County’s Just Transition efforts.
The initial work on Just Transition funded by the federal grant is anticipated to be an 18-24 month process, and one that will lead to further innovation, and, presuming additional funding can be identified, future phases to be pursued over time. Federal grant funds will be used to lead a robust countywide stakeholder engagement process, ensuring that residents of impacted Environmental Justice communities, workers and labor unions, business and industry, local government, environmental justice and environmental interests, community colleges, the workforce development system, and other relevant stakeholders help guide the work and are invested in its outcomes.
The federal grant funds will also be used to conduct economic analysis identifying future opportunities and constraints as well as land use and environmental analysis to help guide planning. Workforce transitions and training needed to support career pathways in the industry clusters identified in the Initiative and the associated necessary investments in the labor force are another critical component of the work to be initiated with the federal funds. The work will culminate in a Just Transition Economic Revitalization Plan, which is a roadmap to move forward with an equitable Contra Costa Just Transition. This will provide a sustainable, feasible plan to make Contra Costa the hub for jobs in the new energy economy-- with a trained workforce ready to take these jobs and a new generation of clean industries/ businesses/ employers investing in the area.
Historical Context
The economic history of Contra Costa County is a story of ongoing transition. The first residents of Contra Costa, the Miwok, Lisjan Ohlone, Yokuts, and Muwekma peoples, enjoyed a hunter-gatherer lifestyle and economy. As Europeans moved into the region, the natural resources and geography made the land that would become Contra Costa County a good location for resource extraction and processing, as well as other industrial activities.
Over the past 150 years, the Contra Costa waterfront has become an attractive location for a variety of industrial and manufacturing businesses, including oil refineries, sugar processing, power plants, steel plants, chemical plants, various other types of manufacturing, and affiliated businesses that rely on water access. Over time many of these facilities have closed or transitioned to other uses. Oil refining has been a foundation for the County’s industrial activity for most of this time.
Mineral extraction in Contra Costa County began in 1850, when lime quarries opened at Mount Diablo. In 1859, coal was discovered in the foothills east of Mount Diablo, and the Black Diamond Mine was established. Black Diamond Mine was one of the primary sources of coal in the western United States for nearly 50 years, from the 1860s into the early 1900s. When coal activity slowed, Black Diamond became a site for sand mining from the 1920s until 1949.
In the western part of Contra Costa County, the community that would become Hercules was established as a company town in 1880 as an explosives manufacturing plant. In the 1940s, Hercules became a site for the production of fertilizer. Hercules also was home to a refinery for 30 years starting in the mid-1960s.
Today, in 2022, there are four refineries in Contra Costa County, three of which are in the unincorporated area: Phillips 66 (in operation since 1896); Martinez Refining (formerly the Shell Refinery, in operation since 1914); Marathon (in operation since 1911)); and Chevron in the City of Richmond (in operation since 1902). Given the State’s goals for phasing out fossil fuels, it is important that we have an effective and equitable plan for renewing our waterfront industries. Placing the current transition away from fossil fuels in a larger historical context shows that economic transition is a regular occurrence.
Ongoing Programs and Related Efforts
There is a growing body of research and funding on which the County could potentially draw as it engages more deeply on Just Transition. Some of this work is described below.
The Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative is a regional cluster-based economic development strategy with a goal of creating 18,000 new jobs by 2035. The Initiative leverages existing competitive advantages and assets by focusing on advanced manufacturing sub-sectors in five targeted clusters (advanced transportation fuels, bio-tech/bio-medical, diverse manufacturing, food processing, and clean tech). There is also a related component focusing on the human capital framework to benefit the residents of the Northern Waterfront. The Initiative is a collaboration between the County and seven partner cities, who work together on diverse actions to enhance the economic vitality of the region. This existing body of work, ongoing actions and relationships will be an important resource upon which to build and progress on Just Transition efforts will further the Initiative.
The California Workforce Development Board is sponsoring a High Road Training Partnership program in Contra Costa County focused on regional workforce strategies. The project is led by the BlueGreen Alliance in partnership with the United Steelworkers, Asian Pacific Environmental Network, California Labor Federation, Contra Costa Labor Council, UC Berkeley Labor Center, and Inclusive Economics. According to the project web site: “This project is focused on ensuring that the workers and communities in Contra Costa County most impacted by the transition from fossil fuels to a clean economy are prepared for the future.” (see attached fact sheet).
The UC Santa Barbara emLab, in conjunction with the UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies, in 2021 developed a study for the California Environmental Protection Agency that identifies carbon neutrality pathways. This research includes findings on emissions and equity impacts, including county-level labor market impacts and tax revenues and census tract level air pollution, health, and equity impacts.
The Green Empowerment Zone is in the process of being established, after AB 844 (Grayson) was adopted in 2021. AB 844 states that the purpose of the Green Empowerment Zone is “to build upon the comparative advantage provided by the regional concentration of highly skilled energy industry workers by prioritizing access to tax incentives, grants, loan programs, workforce training programs, and private sector investment in the renewable energy sector.” AB 179, signed by Governor Newsom in September 2022, provides $5 million to the County of Contra Costa for one-time start-up funding for the Green Empowerment Zone.
Next Steps
- Further define the geographic scope and topical scope of the effort, including developing better understanding of Green Empowerment Zone and how it might complement the JTERP.
- Consider options for structure, composition, and role of stakeholder engagement program.
- Provide additional update to the Sustainability Committee and seek additional direction when federal funds are secured (projected next report to Sustainability Committee is November meeting).
- Develop overall work plan and schedule.
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