Richmond, predominantly non-white San Francisco suburb, agrees to $550M Chevron settlement, logs environmental justice win

The Richmond, California, City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to approve a $550 million settlement with Chevron in exchange for pulling a November ballot measure that could have imposed an oil refining tax on the company.  Per the agreement, Chevron will pay $50 million a year for the next five years, then $60 million a year for the following five. The company initially offered $300 million, but raised the sum after a week of negotiations. A Chevron flag flies over the Chevron refinery in Richmond, California. Photo credit: Ben Margot, The Associated Press Richmond, a suburb of San Francisco with a population of 114,000, has a poverty rate that is double that of the rest of the state of California, according to the World Population Review. The population is 75 percent non-white, Neilsberg Research reports. Richmond Mayor Eduardo Martinez called the settlement a “historic moment” in the push for environmental justice following a “difficult” set of negotiations. “By standing up for environmental justice, as we have, other communities, too, can require that their polluters do the right thing,” he said. The settlement money will help fund much-needed infrastructure improvements, city councilors said, and comes just as money from a previous settlement...