August Update - SB 131 fixes

Action Alert: Don't Repeat Fairchild toxic history by the Bay: Fix SB 131 to Protect Communities, Wildlife, and California’s Future

California’s environmental protections are under attack. In June, the legislature rushed through SB 131, a sweeping rollback of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) — our state’s foundational law for public input, transparency, and environmental review.

Why this matters

Silicon Valley knows all too well the dangers of unchecked “advanced manufacturing.” Fairchild Semiconductor’s toxic plume poisoned San José groundwater for decades, leaving behind one of 23 Superfund sites in Santa Clara County — the most in the nation. At Lehigh Cement in Cupertino, mercury and selenium polluted air and water for years before action was taken. These disasters happened because oversight came too late.

Now, SB 131 threatens to repeat these mistakes by:

• Exempting “advanced manufacturing” projects (including semiconductor plants, lithium recovery, plastics incineration, fertilizer plants, aerospace production, and more) from CEQA review.
  
  

• Excluding critical habitats for endangered and rare species from protection, undermining California’s 30x30 conservation goals.
  
  

• Silencing communities by stripping away the public’s right to know about and weigh in on toxic projects near homes, schools, and natural lands.
  
  

Without CEQA review, endangered species like California condors, mountain yellow-legged frogs, and gray wolves lose vital habitat protections — and frontline communities lose safeguards against toxic pollution.

The good news: its not too late (if we act)

Legislative leaders promised a cleanup bill this session to fix SB 131’s worst flaws — but they will only act if they hear from us now.

In Santa Clara County, Senators Becker and Cortese, and Assemblymembers Ahrens, Lee, and Berman voted for SB 131 - they especially need to hear from constituents.

PLEASE Make three quick calls today.

1. Call your State Senator

• Senator Dave Cortese (District 15)
   Capitol Office Phone: (916) 651- 4015 Senator Dave Cortesesenate.ca.gov
  
  

• Senator Josh Becker (District 13)
   Capitol Office Phone: (916) 651- 4013

Ask them to sign onto Senator Blakespear’s cleanup letter (via Brynn.Cook@sen.ca.gov).

2.  Call your Assemblymember

California State Assembly

• Assemblymember Marc Berman (District 23)
   Capitol Office Phone: (916) 319-2023 

• Assemblymember Alex Lee (District 24)
   Capitol Office Phone: (916) 319-2024 

• Assemblymember Patrick Ahrens (District 26)
   Capitol Office Phone: (916) 319-2026 

Ask them to join the SB 131 cleanup letter, now open to Assembly Members.

3.  Call Senate Pro Tem Mike McGuire at (916) 651-4002

• Thank him for promising to fix SB 131, and urge him to honor his word before the session ends September 12.

• Suggested words:
   “Please follow through on your commitment to fix SB 131 by restoring CEQA protections for endangered species habitat and removing the advanced manufacturing exemption. California’s communities and wildlife depend on it.”

Find your legislators here: findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov

Phone calls are most effective. Follow up with an email if you can.

Don't Pave Over Cuesta Park!

Pygmy Nuthatch: Deanne Tucker

Don’t Pave Over Cuesta Park!

What is happening?

The City of Mountain View is considering paving over parts of Cuesta Park and the Cuesta Park Annex to build pickleball courts - at the expense of beautiful green open space and valuable wildlife habitat.

A community meeting will be held Wednesday, Aug. 27 at 6:30 p.m. at the Mountain View Community Center, 201 S. Rengstorff Ave.

Why is this important?

Cuesta Park is the green heart of Mountain View and a regionally important park. It is well-loved for picnics, games, peaceful strolls, bird watching, and simply enjoying nature without programmed activities. In a city that is becoming increasingly dense, unprogrammed green spaces are more vital than ever for both people and wildlife.

Together with the Cuesta Park Annex, Cuesta Park forms a rare undeveloped island of habitat in the heart of Mountain View. This green refuge supports a variety of birds, including red-tailed hawks, great horned owls, and great blue herons. One hundred and fifteen species of birds have been observed here in the past five years. The area also supports Mountain View’s biodiversity and sustainability goals by providing habitat, cooling the urban heat island, and storing carbon.

Cuesta Park and the Annex are beloved gathering places for local dog owners, many of whom enjoy walking and exercising their dogs here. This informal use builds community connections and gives both people and pets access to safe, natural space.

Pickleball facilities are notorious for their sharp, repetitive noise, bright night lighting, and the extra vehicle traffic they attract, all of which would significantly disrupt the park’s wildlife and peaceful atmosphere.

Once open space is paved, it is nearly impossible to restore it to its natural state. This is a permanent decision that would erode one of Mountain View’s most valued natural assets.

What can you do?

• Attend the Public Meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 27 at 6:30 p.m. at the Mountain View Community Center, 201 S. Rengstorff Ave.

• Write to the City Council. Send your email to:
  city.council@mountainview.gov, Pat.Showalter@mountainview.gov, Alison.Hicks@mountainview.gov, Ellen.Kamei@mountainview.gov, Lucas.Ramirez@mountainview.gov, Emily.Ramos@mountainview.gov, chris.clark@mountainview.gov, john.mcalister@mountainview.gov, Faryal.Saiidnia@mountainview.gov, john.marchant@mountainview.gov

• Talking Points for Your Communication with the City. Please say a little about yourself and why you care, and add any of the following:

  • Cuesta Park and the Cuesta Park Annex together provide the last large, contiguous green spaces in central Mountain View.

  • These areas support 115 species of birds that need this habitat to survive in Mountain View. It is important parkland to include in the City’s Biodiversity strategy.

  • Pickleball courts create significant noise impacts that can be heard hundreds of feet away, disrupting both wildlife and park users.

  • Night lighting for courts would introduce artificial light into a dark refuge, harming nocturnal animals and reducing the park’s natural character.

  • As density increases in Mountain View, it is critical to retain unprogrammed, natural spaces for both human well-being and biodiversity.

  • We should be reducing paved space, increasing parkland and canopy, and siting new sports facilities away from existing facilities or wildlife habitat.

  • Shoreline Park and its vicinity are  NOT viable alternatives.

  • Once open space is paved over, it is nearly impossible to restore it to its natural state.

  • Please expand the parkland “pie” rather than have residents compete for existing parkland slices.

SB 131

Burrowing Owl: Sushanta Bhandarkar

NEW SB 131 Weakens transparency and harms the environment: Urgent Correction Needed for Cleanup Legislation

What is happening?

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is the state’s foundational law for transparency, public participation, and environmental protection in project planning. It requires agencies and developers to disclose impacts and consider public input, alternatives or mitigation before moving forward.

In June, Senate Bill 131 was signed into law in a rushed, flawed process after only three days of public review, one hearing in the Senate Budget Committee, no hearings in the Assembly, and no meaningful process for the scrutiny warranted by such a sweeping rollback of environmental protections.

SB 131 creates new CEQA exemptions for certain housing, infrastructure, and “advanced manufacturing” projects. While the bill was promoted as helping California meet housing needs, its provisions weaken habitat protections and remove public review for industrial projects with potentially significant environmental and health risks.

CEQA’s public review process not only identifies environmental risks, it often improves project designs, triggers other necessary permits, and involves local resource agencies. Without it, hazardous projects can proceed with less oversight and no mitigation.

Santa Clara County legislators who voted in favor of SB 131 include Senators Josh Becker and Dave Cortese, and Assemblymembers Patrick Ahrens (District 26), Ash Kalra (District 25), Alex Lee (District 24), Marc Berman (District 23), and Gail Pellerin (District 28).

Legislative leadership has publicly committed, both on the floor and to members, to pursue a quick “cleanup” bill to address SB 131’s most serious flaws. Dozens of organizations are calling on the legislature to stand by this commitment.

Why is it important?

Without urgent fixes, SB 131 will cause lasting harm to California’s biodiversity, communities, public health and environmental protections:

• Critical habitat excluded from protections: SB 131’s definition of “natural and protected lands” omits habitat and lands essential for completing Natural Community Conservation Plans (NCCPs) or Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs). Without CEQA review, projects could destroy habitat for candidate, rare, threatened, and endangered species without surveys or mitigation—undermining California’s 30x30 conservation goal and pushing species closer to extinction.

• Loss of CEQA-triggered species protections: Most private lands have never been surveyed for rare or endangered species. CEQA reviews are often the only process that identifies these resources and triggers California Endangered Species Act (CESA) protections. Without CEQA, developers may avoid CESA permits entirely.

• Broad “advanced manufacturing” exemption: SB 131’s vague definition covers any facility that “improves existing or creates entirely new materials and processes, including lithium recovery plants, rare earth strip mines, semiconductor manufacturing, aerospace production, fertilizer plants, plastic recycling, hydrogen fuel production, and water bottling facilities.

• Real-world pollution risks: History shows the consequences of allowing hazardous industrial facilities to operate without strong oversight:

  • Fairchild Semiconductor in San Jose leaked toxic solvents into the groundwater, creating a Superfund site and contributing to Santa Clara County’s current total of 23 active Superfund sites, the highest in the nation.

  • Lehigh Cement Plant in Cupertino emitted mercury into the air and selenium into local waterways for decades before enforcement and public pressure forced reductions.

  • Other historic cases across California - from perchlorate contamination in the Inland Empire to PCB dumping in the Bay Area - demonstrate that once contamination occurs, cleanup can take decades and cost millions, with lasting impacts on public health.

• CEQA’s unique role: CEQA often triggers other permitting processes, involves local agencies in planning, and encourages alternative designs or stronger mitigation measures - benefits that other environmental laws do not guarantee. Removing CEQA review removes these safeguards.

What you can do? Take Action:

Contact Your Senator and Assemblymember
Your voice can make a difference. Call your state representatives as soon as possible and urge them to support immediate cleanup legislation for SB 131.

How to find your representatives:

1. Go to findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov.
   

2. Enter your address to find your California State Senator and Assemblymember.
   

3. Note their Sacramento office phone numbers and emails.

Tip: Phone calls take only minutes, and are more impactful than emails, but you can also send a follow-up email with the same message.

When you call, you can say:

Hello, my name is [YOUR NAME], and I live in [CITY]. I’m calling to urge [Senator/Assemblymember NAME] to support immediate cleanup legislation for SB 131 immediately. SB 131 was passed with almost no public review and weakens CEQA in ways that put our communities, health, and environment at risk.

Please:

• Add habitat and conservation lands to the definition of “natural and protected lands” so projects impacting these areas remain subject to CEQA review and mitigation.

• Remove the broad “advanced manufacturing” exemption that could allow toxic industrial projects to bypass environmental review.

These changes are critical to protecting endangered species, preventing toxic contamination, and keeping Californians safe. Thank you.

Protect CEQA

Dear nature lover,

As many of you may know, environmental groups across the state have been closely monitoring CA SB 607 and its alarming attempt to drastically roll back the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). We’ve just learned that SB 607 will be included in the Governor’s budget trailer bill, with final language expected Friday (6/27). We are concerned that the most extreme aspects of SB 607 remain in the bill, and it's moving forward without the transparency of normal legislation.

We must act now. Raise your voice to oppose SB 607 today

and demand more time for public input.

CEQA serves as an environmental bill of rights, ensuring Californians have a voice in the decisions that impact our communities. With unprecedented threats to environmental protections at the national level, now more than ever, it is critical to protect California’s bedrock environmental regulations.

Contact your representatives in the State Assembly and State Senate now! Contacts can be found at https://findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov.

Please use this script when you call or write.

Thank you for raising your voice to stop one of the greatest threats to CEQA in recent years.