Comprised of neighborhood residents, city and county officials, and local businesses, the West Oakland Community Action Plan (WOCAP) Steering Committee oversees and advises on implementation of the Owning Our Air community action plan.
May Recap
Our partners at Spheros Environmental are bringing together different datasets to tell the story of our neighborhood’s air. West Oakland residents already know the neighborhood has an air quality problem: now, we’re developing a data portal to back up your lived experiences with hard data. It’s meant to generate curiosity and insights on air pollution so neighbors can advocate for their own clean air solutions.
In this meeting, we reviewed the draft version and brainstormed ways to make the data portal clearer and more useful.
- Diesel particulate matter (DPM) is going down overall–but other sources of pollution are going up. When we created the West Oakland Community Action Plan (WOCAP) in 2017, DPM was by far and away the most significant pollutant. That’s changing: thanks to a combination of community advocacy and State regulations, we found a nearly 50% reduction in average concentrations of black carbon (a key component of DPM) between air monitoring projects in 2017 and 2024. But other types of air pollution, like road dust, are on the rise.
- Progress at the Port is limited. DPM from the Port is projected to rise slightly, making up almost 70% of total DPM emissions in West Oakland by 2029. The Port is getting fenceline air monitors as part of their Clean Ports project. They’re looking for a contractor now, and monitors should be installed by the end of the year. This will give us more data on the Port’s DPM problem. We also discussed the Port’s stagnant growth rate, and how slowdowns in global trade caused by tariffs could affect pollution levels.
About the committee
The WOCAP Steering Committee is comprised of neighborhood residents, independent technical advisors, city and county officials, and local business representatives. The committee has quarterly meetings open to the public.
Community
Rev. Ambrose Carroll
Resident/Green the Church
Alvirdia Owens
Resident
Robert Phillips
West Oakland Health Center
Leila Yasmin Saddat
West Oakland Health Center
Nonprofit and
technical Advisors
Richard Grow
Resident (US EPA, retired)
Brent Bucknam
Hyphae Labs/Urban Biofilter
David Wooley
UC Berkeley
Local business
Bill Aboudi
AB Trucking
Government
Laura Arreola
Alt: Brandon Reed
Port of Oakland
Cathy DeLuca
Alt: Colin Piethe and Celina Chan
Oakland Dept. of Transportation
Khalilha Haynes
City of Oakland
Matt Hoeft
EBMUD
Soni Johnson
Alameda County
Kevin Krewson
Caltrans
Tram Nguyen
Alt: Adriana Alvarado
Alameda County Public Health
Diana Ruiz
Bay Area Air District
Lily Wu
CalEPA
Get involved!
Anyone can attend the monthly Steering Committee meeting! If you’d like to get more involved, joining the Steering Committee as a voting member is a wonderful opportunity for West Oakland residents and advocates to learn more and influence the fight for environmental justice in West Oakland. Email us to learn more.
Meetings & documents
Outreach Documents
Steering Committee members are encouraged to use the following documents when engaging with the public about WOCAP.
2026
May 6, 2026
At this public steering committee meeting, we gave feedback on a public storymap incorporating air monitoring data. Because of a technical glitch, this meeting wasn’t recorded.
Meeting documents:
April 1, 2026
At this steering committee members-only working session, we reviewed a draft data portal for our air quality data.
Meeting documents:
March 4, 2026
At this steering committee members-only working session, we saw the black carbon data from our West Oakland Air Quality (WOAQ) monitoring network.
Meeting documents:
February 4, 2026
2025
November 5, 2025
At this steering committee members-only working session, we saw preliminary data from the West Oakland Air Quality (WOAQ) monitoring network.
Meeting documents:
October 1, 2025
At this steering committee members-only working session, we heard about a new research project to evaluate AB-617’s impact. We also discussed the Clean Ports program and how it might bolster WOCAP strategies.
Meeting documents:
September 3, 2025
We went over the progress and challenges of our tree planting and care initiative. A green canopy can reduce exposure to dangerous emissions. Trees are a generational win and investment for the community, especially when they’re properly cared for.
Meeting documents:
May 7, 2025
At this steering committee members-only working session, we got an update from partners at Hyphae Design Lab about our Prescott Greening project. We saw new data on pollution exposure in Prescott, and brainstormed how to tackle bureaucratic barriers to planting living buffers along Frontage Road this Fall.
Meeting documents:
March 12, 2025
At this meeting, we covered a new tree planting initiative bringing hundreds of trees to the neighborhood. We had a rich discussion about what to plant, and how to maintain trees. We went over the process to request a free tree, and our plan to create a coalition to maintain and steward our urban forest for years to come.
Meeting documents:
2024
October 2, 2024
At this steering committee members-only working session, we heard from partners at Hyphae Design Lab about our Prescott Greening project. We have a plan to add trees and greenery to the “immediately plantable” areas of Frontage Road (where we wouldn’t have to make major changes to add plants). We also got updates on the Civil Protection of the People of Oakland Ordinance (OMC Ch. 1.10) from the City Attorney’s Office.
Meeting documents:
- Meeting slides (PDF)
September 4, 2024
August 7, 2024
At this steering committee members-only working session, we revisited WOCAP’s original description of the West Oakland community. We looked at new health data and considered what changes this description needs 5 years later.
Meeting documents:
- Meeting slides (PDF)
July 25, 2024
At this steering committee members-only working session, we continued to refine WOCAP strategies that have yet to make significant progress, so they’re more actionable.
June 5, 2024
Meeting documents:
- Proposed WOCAP strategy revisions (PDF)
- Meeting agenda (PDF)
- Meeting slides (PDF)
May 1, 2024
At this steering committee members-only working session, we did a deep dive on the West Oakland Air Quality (WOAQ) monitoring network. We explored the types of monitors the network uses, went over preliminary data results, and explored potential new sites we could include in the network.
Meeting documents:
- Meeting slides (PDF)
April 3, 2024
At this steering committee members-only working session, we brainstormed how we can encourage people to report potential violations so more West Oakland residents can take action against illegal polluting. We also discussed our plan for our five-year progress report.
Meeting documents:
- Meeting slides (PDF)
March 6, 2024
At this steering committee members-only working session, we went over how to use the WOCAP tracker to see how our strategies are making progress. We also got updates from some of our partners, including BAAQMD (Bay Area Air Quality Management District), the Port of Oakland, and the City of Oakland.
Meeting documents:
- Meeting slides (PDF)
February 7, 2024
Meeting documents:
- Meeting agenda (PDF)
- Meeting slides (PDF)
- Breakout discussion notes (Miro board)
Resources shared during the meeting:
- Frontage Road Study conducted by the City and Port of Oakland
2023
There was no meeting in Jan, Feb, July, and Nov of 2023.
December 7, 2023
Driving rain and early sunsets couldn’t keep people away from our first in-person WOCAP gathering since the pandemic. Nearly 150 people showed up to participate in our end-of-year celebration of the West Oakland Community Action Plan. We were deeply inspired by keynote speaker Christina Garcia, co-author of the AB617 legislation that sparked the West Oakland Community Action Plan, and her fight to set a new bar for community self-determination in air policy development.
We heard over and over again from attendees how much people enjoyed interacting with the many partner organizations and agency staff who we’ve collaborated with over the past several years of WOCAP work. It was a joy to share the work—and each others’ company.
October 4, 2023
September 6, 2023
Documents and resources
- Agenda (PDF) and meeting slides (PDF)
- Environmental Enforcement Cheat Sheet (PDF)
- WOEIP’s Schnitzer backgrounder and community impact survey
- Outline of CARB’s enforcement process ↗️ and it’s latest Truck Inspection Summary (PDF)
August 2, 2023
Documents and resources
- Agenda and meeting slides
- WOCAP Glossary
- List of WOCAP strategies on woeip.org (view on desktop to filter by topic)
- Strategy Updates Cheat Sheet
- Strategies Update Q2 2023 spreadsheet
June 7, 2023
Documents and resources
- Agenda and meeting slides
- Oakland General Plan: Environmental Justice Element documents
May 3, 2023
Documents and resources
- Agenda and meeting slides
- Oakland General Plan: Environmental Justice Element documents
- Environmental enforcement cheat sheet
Action items for Steering Committee members
- Steering Committee members have until Sunday, May 7 to provide final feedback on the Draft Planning Code Amendments Related to WOCAP Strategies comments that will be submitted to the City on the Steering Committee’s behalf. Please submit your feedback to Alicia Parker (aparker@baaqmd.gov).
- We will continue to discuss the WOCAP/air quality related policies at the June meeting. If you want to help us design June’s discussion/activity, please reach out to Beth Altshuler Munoz (BethAltMunoz@gmail.com).
April 5, 2023
March 1, 2023
2022
There was no meeting in August 2022
Dec. 7, 2022
Nov 2, 2022
Due to technical difficulties, this meeting’s recording is not available.
Documents
- Slides
- Meeting minutes
- Residential Electrification 101 presentation slides