What's New

December 14 - Diesel Discharge in Strawberry Creek. Read about it and watch video at indybay.org (be sure to read this comment), insidebayarea.com, and berkeleyside.com or browse this Google search.

Alarming News! We learned that our efforts to challenge LBNL's plans for the Computational Research and Theory Facility (CRT) received an adverse ruling in federal court...read more here.

December 13 - hike throught the canyon. The Greenbelt Alliance website has posted a description of a 6-mile hike through Strawberry Canyon, which includes an account of the history of the canyon and the creek — here.

October 27 - Earthquakes on the Hayward Fault: A 3.6 earthquake occurred on the Hayward Fault at 5:36 a.m. today, the most recent in a series. See a brief report in the Mercury-News, comments by a local seismologist at the Concord Patch, and this 2008 letter by a local geologist warning of the danger to University buildings.

September 28, 2011 - Legal Update:
CRT: On August 31, 2011 Save Strawberry Canyon filed a final brief [341K PDF] and a request for judicial notice [1.1MB PDF]. A hearing is scheduled for October 20, 2011.

September 26, 2011 - Legal Updates:
SERC: A hearing was held September 2 on our petition — a ruling is expected within a month.
BELLA: We filed an appellant's opening trail brief in our appeal of the previous Court decision on this project

August 24, 2011: Save Strawberry Canyon sent this letter to UC Berkeley asking that Strawberry Canyon's value as a unique historical resource be considered when determining the environmental impact of the stadium construction and the proposed changes to Witter Field. Included in the letter are quotes from several important historic documents (which may also be found on the internet). See also the University environmental document in question and other project documents.

August 14, 2011: Ground contamination in Strawberry Canyon? — Before building their new General Purpose Lab or the SERC facility, LBNL has proceeded to clear the "Old Town" site. The necessary permits needed for proceeding with construction are based upon approved "Workplans" that include testing for ground contamination. Is this contamination testing adequate? Read these two letters (July 28 & August 2) to LBNL from the Strawberry Creek Watershed Council.

August 12, 2011: Trial Update - SERC Project: The hearing in the civil court trail concerning the SERC project has been rescheduled for September 2nd, at 9:00am before Judge Frank Roesch, Dept. 31, Post Office Building (2nd floor), 201 13th Street, Oakland. Read more about this issue on our Legal Actions page, where copies of our court documents are available.

July 19: Seismic Phase 2 challenge denied — On July 19 Judge Vilardi of the Alameda Superior Court issued a decision denying Save Strawberry Canyon's challege of the Regent's certification of their Environmental Impact Report (EIR) regarding the Seismic Phase 2 Project. Read a PDF copy of the decision here, and a copy of the proposed judgement here. Save Strawberry Canyon disagrees with this ruling for reasons already stated in our opening brief and reply brief. Read more about the issues here.

June 14, 2011: Seismic Phase 2 Court Hearing Canceled — The hearing scheduled for June 20 in Pleasanton (see trial updates below) has been canceled. Judge Vilardi advised the parties that the briefs were well done and she did not need oral argument unless requested. Since neither party has made such a request, the court took the hearing off the calendar and will rule without a hearing. Read more about the issues here.

June 10, 2011: Earthquake on Hayward Fault — A magnitude 2.1 earthquake occured yesterday June 9 at 10:37 am, according to the USGS. It was centered near Panoramic Way, just southeast of Memorial Stadium. In a 2008 report the USGS said that "An earthquake of M6.8 or greater on the Hayward Fault...is increasingly likely" and would "impact more than 5 million people and property and contents valued in excess of $1.5 trillion".

June 6, 2011: "An Ampitheater for the Damming" — a transcript is now available of Gray Brechin's evening talk given last month in the Botanical Garden as a fund-raiser for Save Strawberry Canyon. Read a PDF copy here and learn about the history of the use and misuse of Strawberry Canyon.

June 3, 2011: Trial Update - SERC Project: The hearing in the civil court trail concerning the SERC project has been scheduled for August 19, 9am in Dept. 31 of the René C. Davidson Courthouse, Oakland. Read more here.

June 1, 2011: Tree Removal Update — FEMA is currently working on an Environmental Impact Study (EIS) for three projects: UC's tree removal project in Strawberry Canyon, EBRPD's tree cutting in certain areas, and the City of Oakland's tree cutting projects. See our letter regarding this issue here.
    The three agencies involved (UC, EBRPD and Oakland) were asked to give URS (the company preparing the EIS for FEMA) information that would support (i.e. rationalize) the type and amount of tree removal that each of them had proposed. We have heard that the EIS will be completed in July. Then there should be a public hearing and a period when oral and written comments may be submitted to FEMA.
    See also the project's website, this EBRPD Environmental Assessment at the FEMA website, and the Hills Conservation Network website.

Atop A Volcano...Our first music video, is on YouTube. See it on our video page and sing along with us. Don't forget to share the link with your friends.

March 31, 2011: We filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court challenging the Department of Energy's approval LBNL's CRT Project and their finding that the CRT Project will not have a significant effect on the quality of the human environment and does not require an Environmental Impact Statement required by Federal environmental regulations. Read a copy of the complaint here [710K PDF] and more about our past legal actions regarding the CRT project on our Legal Actions page.

March 14, 2011: We sent a letter to U.C. Berkeley asking that the University consider not only the seismic situation under the Stadium in their plans for earthquake retrofitting, but also the geological conditions eastward of it. We believe that their assessment of the risks are inadequate. Read the letter here, and links to more information here.

March 12, 2011: We just posted a PDF copy [1.5 MB] of the opening trail brief challenging the Regent's approval of the Seismic...Phase 2 Project.

March 3, 2011: The US District Court dissolved its August 17, 2009 injunction (see above) that halted construction on the CRT project. Read the court order here [49K PDF].

March 2, 2011: Last week the U.S. Department of Energy released a "Finding of No Significant Impact" (FONSI) regarding LBNL's proposed Computational Research and Theory Facility Project (CRT). The DOE believes that the Lab's Environmental Assessment (EA) was sufficient and that it does not have to prepare a more thorough Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Save Strawberry Canyon intends to challenge this finding in Federal Court, arguing that the more thorough EIS is necessary and proper. Read about the controversy surrounding the CRT project here. A PDF copy of the FONSI is available here and at the CRT website.

February 23, 2011: Save Strawberry Canyon filed a lawsuit yesterday against the UC Regents in the Alameda County Superior Court challenging their approval of the Solar Energy Research Center (SERC) project and their certification of the associated Final Environmental Impact Report. See this PDF copy [900 KB].

February 23, 2011: We've posted a PDF copy of our Notice of Appeal of the court order of December 17 which denied our motion to overturn the approval of the Environmental Assessment of LBNL's BELLA Project. See the court order and related documents here.

January 14, 2011: Save Strawberry Canyon sent a letter to the UC Regents urging them to restrain from moving forward on the proposed SERC project, both because the EIR is inadequate and because plans for moving forward on SERC are premature until proper federal review is undertaken in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). See also this January 17 addendum adding a New York Times article about the possibility of "superstorms" affecting central California.

January 3, 2011: Second Campus? The University of California has issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) to identify a second site to consolidate current programs that are located in space spread throughout the Bay Area, and to prepare for long-term future growth. See also this news release. Comments regarding this news can be made at Today at Berkeley Lab. See also links to articles on our documents page.

December 26, 2010: We've just added a copy of a letter from members of LBNL's Community Advisory Group to LBNL — the letter lists a number of sources of mistrust of the Lab among many community members, and gives recommendations for steps the Lab can take to gain the community's trust.

December 22, 2010: LBNL has made available its final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) on its Solar Energy Research Center (SERC) project at the SERC website. Our comments on the draft EIR were submitted in October.

December 17, 2010: The U.S. District Court denied our motion for summary judgment to overturn the Department of Energy's approval of the Environmental Assessment of LBNL's BELLA Project. Read a PDF copy here. See more of the court documents here.

December 14, 2010: The Strawberry Creek Watershed Council submitted a letter to the Regional Water Quality Control Board, asking for response to the Nov. 29, 2010 letter and adding a request for additional information about an underground tunnel connecting Building 71 (BELLA) and Building 51 (Bevatron).

December 9, 2010: a Federal District Court hearing was held in San Francisco regarding LBNL's proposed BELLA project. Save Strawberry Canyon, the plaintiff, challenged the Department of Energy's (DOE) failure to comply adequately with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by approving the proposed Berkeley Lab Laser Accelerator (BELLA) without a full Environmental Impact Study (EIS). All parties are awaiting the judge's decision. See our court documents here.

November 29, 2010: The Strawberry Creek Watershed Council submitted another request to the Regional Water Quality Control Board, asking for enforcement of water quality standards at LBNL's BELLA site and an examination of water discharged from the Bevatron site.

See our maps — we've added a link to an 1875 map of Strawberry Valley by Frank Soulé showing natural sources of the water supply of UC Berkeley.

November 3, 2010: FEMA has posted a Scoping Report on their proposed Environmental Impact Statement on the Hazardous Fire Risk Reduction projects in the East Bay Hills. View it at their website under "Recent Documents".

Has construction on the BELLA project begun without proper approval? Read John Shively's letter to the Water Quality Control Board. Read about John Shively here.

October 29, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon filed a Reply Brief (136K PDF copy) and Declaration of Counsel (745K PDF copy) in support of our motion in Federal District Court for summary judgment to overturn DOE's approval of the BELLA Project. See also Oct. 1 and Sept. 3 below.

October 21, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon submitted comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Report for LBNL's SERC (Solar Energy Research Center) Construction. Read a PDF copy here. The Draft EIR and the Lab's press releases are available this LBNL webpage.

October 15, 2010: Read Save Strawberry Canyon's comments about the draft Environmental Assessment for LBNL's CRT (Computational Research and Theory Facility) project here, and more about the dangers of the CRT project here. Several members of Save Strawberry Canyon also submitted comments.

October 7, 2010: Mountain Lions in Strawberry Canyon? See the ABC/Channel 7 report.

October 1, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon filed in the Federal District Court an opposition to the Department of Energy's arguments regarding the sufficiency of their Environmental Assessment of LBNL's BELLA project. Read a PDF copy here.

September 30, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon sent a letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) asking that they not provide funding for two University of Californa projects that would completely remove certain trees from areas affecting Strawberry Canyon and its neighborhoods. Read a PDF copy here.

September 23, 2010: Atop A Volcano...Our first music video, is now on YouTube! See it on our video page and sing along with us. Don't forget to share the link with your friends.

September 16, 2010: Lawrence Berkeley Lab seeks second campus. Read this story on the Berkeleyside website. The Lab's own coverage can be found at their News Center. A previous story about the possibility of Alameda Point as an alternative site can be read at insidebayarea.com, and the Lab's press release can be seen at their Media Report blog.

September 3, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon filed a motion for summary judgement, asking the Federal District Court to set aside the Department of Energy approval of the Environmental Assessment (EA) for the proposed Berkeley Lab Laser Accelerator (BELLA) because it fails to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). Read a PDF copy of the motion here.

Videos: We have two videos on YouTube. See them here.

August 16, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon filed a complaint in the Alameda Court against the U.C. Regents challenging their approval of one of their proposed construction projects affecting Strawberry Canyon and its neighborhood. Read a PDF copy of the complaint here (932 KB file).

August 12, 2010: Read our August Bulletin for Members, Walkers & Runners.

Taking a Strike and Dip in Strawberry Canyon. Beds of shale above UC dorms are sloping--but which way? Are the dorms in danger? Read more.

July 27, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon submitted comments to the Department of Energy about the draft Environmental Assessment of one of LBNL's demolition/construction projects. Read a PDF copy here, and more about the Environmental Assessment here..

July 9, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon sent a letter to the UC Regents urging them not to certify the Environmental Impact Report for LBNL's proposed Seismic Phase 2 Project because it fails to consider fully the impacts to the natural environment, the risks to the health and safety of the community, and the use of resources without degradation and unintended consequences. Read it here.

July 2, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon sent a letter to the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board requesting that they initiate a risk assessment of LBNL's proposed construction which may pose a risk to water quality. Read a PDF copy here.

June 11, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon submitted comments to LBNL about their proposed Draft Environmental Report for the Solar Energy Research Center construction project. Read it here.

June, 2010 — Grant Funding: Save Strawberry Canyon is proud to announce that it recently received grant funding from The Rose Foundation for Communities and the Environment.

Toxic Waste: Has LBNL released toxic waste into the Strawberry Canyon watershed? How well is this being monitored? Read this report by the Committee to Minimize Toxic Waste.

April 28, 2010: Save Strawberry Canyon sent a letter to LBNL expressing concern that the Regents may approve certain construction projects in the canyon before an important environmental review is completed. Read it here.

Fault Activity Map: The California Geological Survey has a number of maps showing earthquake hazards, including their interactive 2010 Fault Activity Map.

March 31, 2010: Read about "On The Edge", our video presentation and panel discussion on March 21.

March 21, 2010: Read our latest newsletter.

March 12, 2010: The California Court of Appeals reversed a previous Alameda Superior Court judgement that would have required the Regents to recirculate part of their Environmental Impact Report on construction projects in Strawberry Canyon for possible revisions. From the Court of Appeals website:

The judgment is reversed and the trial court is instructed to enter, consistent with this opinion, a new and different judgment denying plaintiffs' petition for writ of mandate. The Regents are entitled to recover their costs on appeal.

Will Berkeley Be the Next Haiti? Read an article by Steven Newton, a project director for the National Center for Science Education, on the Huffington Post.

Older News
See our list of documents, our description of the threats to Strawberry Canyon, and the legal actions that have been taken to stop these threats.

Save Strawberry Canyon is more than ever seeking support, new members, and engaged community concern — Litigation continues and critical land-use issues remain!   Join Us!