"After decades of lax oversight, new efforts are underway to protect communities from toxic emissions without putting the industry out of business."
"OAKLAND, California — The engine from Oakland Fire Department’s Station Number 2 had rolled out to Schnitzer Steel before, but this call was different.
It wasn’t the typical smoldering nugget of debris. Instead, smoke was billowing from a massive pile of scrap as flames shot outward from an orange glow deep within.
Lt. Eduardo Ibarra was on that engine, the first to respond to the metal shredder’s bayside yard that night in August 2023. He guessed the burning pile was close to the size of a football field, 50 to 70 feet high in places.
“We knew that we were gonna be there for a long time,” Ibarra told an Alameda County criminal grand jury, according to a transcript of the proceedings obtained by Public Health Watch."
Molly Peterson reports for Public Health Watch March 18, 2025.
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