Environment
The Oakland Police Department has sent out an advisory urging residents of the North Oakland Hills to stay indoors and close all windows and doors and a large plume of smoke from Chevron’s Richmond Refinery headed towards the hills.
More than 126 pounds of expired drugs and at least seven pounds of controlled substances were collected from senior Oakland residents during the Healthy Living Festival, an annual festival hosted by the United Seniors of Oakland and Alameda County (USOAC). The coalition of Oakland residents hosted the Healthy Living Festival at the Oakland Zoo on July 19th.
Hundreds of Oakland residents woke up Saturday morning to put on a surgical mask, lace up their boots and get their hands dirty during the second annual “Throw Down for the Town,” a service festival that gave Oakland residents 34 options to transform their neighborhoods.
On Saturday, animals at the Oakland Zoo will suspend their diet plans and indulge in what could easily be this year’s largest animal party, feasting on servings of produce donated by Oakland residents, many of whom will come and watch the animals eat their hearts out between 8 am and 6 pm.
Every Wednesday between 10 a.m and 2 p.m., an organic farmer’s market appears, tucked between the Cathedral of Christ the Light and the Kaiser Permanente offices near Lake Merritt. Operating since May, the Ordway Organic Farmer’s Market, a petite selection of just over a half dozen booths selling fruits, veggies, plants and other fare, is the new kid on the block on an array of farmer’s markets that dot Oakland. However, it is unique because it is among the few that take place midweek, mid-day and and are all-organic.
This Saturday, dozens of volunteering opportunities will be available during the second annual “Throw Down for the Town,” a service festival that gives Oakland residents several options to transform their neighborhoods.
From Occupy Oakland activists and anti-war protestors to medical cannabis advocates and people using polar bear mascots to protest against oil drilling in the Arctic, President Barack Obama’s fundraising stop in Oakland on Monday night drew vocal dissent and equally vocal support from different local groups.
Hundreds of new baby animals were born at the Oakland Zoo over the last few months in what biologists at the facility describe as one of the zoo’s biggest baby booms in many years. The zoo, a sanctuary for more than 660 native and exotic animals located at the far eastern end of Oakland, has recently become home to more than 200 newborn animals including a squirrel monkey, milk frogs and a giraffe, with a few more births expected in the coming weeks.
It was the final meeting before the council adjourned for its summer break. The agenda was packed, and so was the room as representatives came out to support or oppose two particular items on the agenda: Mayor Jean Quan’s proposed appointees for the Board of Port Commissioners, and a Bus Rapid Transit project that would extend 10 miles from San Leandro to Oakland and improve traffic conditions that will result in less wait time and more efficient passenger service throughout the area.
Quan has asked the council to confirm the reappointment of James Head and the appointment of Bryan Parker and Cestra “Ces” Butner to the board.